Author . 




Title. 



.aassljE.573. 

BookA^^.... 



Imprint. 



INSTRUCTIONS AND FOUMS 



TO BE OBSERVED IN APPLYING FOR 



AEMT AND MYY PENSIONS, 



JIKDER THE 



ACTS OF JULY 14, 1862, JULY 4, 1864, MARCH 3, 1865, JUNE 6, 1865, 
JULY 25, 1866, AND JULY 27, 1868. 



WASHIlsrGTOlSr: 

«&OTER]SaiJSNT PEINTIWa OFPIOl 

18 6 8. 



\ 



^^A^ 

^v^ 



^■^ IISTEUCTIOIS. 



TTnder the act of Congxess approved Jtxly 14, 1862, and acts amenda- 
tory thereof, pensions are gi-anted to the following classes of persons : 

I. iNYALros, disabled since March 4, 1861, in the military or nxival 
service of the United States, in the line of duty. 

II. Widows of officers, soldiers, or seamen, dying of wounds received 
or of disease contracted in the military or naval ser\'ice, as above. 

m. Children, under 16 years of age, of such deceased persons, if 
there is no widow surviving, or from the time of the widow's remarriage. 

IV. Mothers of officers, soldiers, or seamen, deceased as aforesaid, 
l^rovided the latter have left neither widow nor children under 16 years 
of age; and provided, also, that the mother was dependant, wholly or in 
part, upon the deceased for support. 

V. Fathers, upon the same conditions, and subject to the same restric- 
tions, as mothers, if there be no mother siu^viving. 

VI. Brothers ajid Sisters, under 16 yeai-s of age, of deceased 
officers, soldiers, or seamen, dependent on the latter wholly or in part for 
support^ if there be neither widow, muior child under 16 years of 
age, nor father survivuig ; all of such minor brothers and sisters to be 
pensionetl jointlj-. 

Only one full pension in any case vnh be allowed to the relatives of a 
deceased officer, soldier, or seaman, and in order of precedence, as set 
forth above. 

The rates of pension to the several classes and grades are distinctly 
set forth in the first section of the act of July 14, 1862, a copy of which 
is herewith published. 

Widows who have never applied for pension, and who are entitled to 
the additional allowance provided by the second section of the act of 
July 26, 1866, should file an application in accordance with form K. 

ARMY pensions. 

All declarations (including evidence of identity) are required to be made 
before a court of record, or before some officer of such coui't duly author- 
ized to administer oaths, and having custody of its seal. Testimony, 
other than that indicated above, may be taken before a justice of the 
l>eace, or other officer having like authority to admmister oaths, but in 
no case will any evidence be received that is verified before an officer 
who is concerned in prosecuting the claim, or has a manifest interest 
therein. 

The subjoined forms should be exactly followed in the classes for which 



tliey are designated. Ko attorney ^vW. he regarded as taving filed tli^ 
necessary declaration and affida\'its, unless the forms, as well as the 
instructions given iu this pantpMetj are strictly complied with. In 
declarations of -s^ddows and luothetSj ths continuantee of their widow- 
hood must be averred. 

In suppoil; of the allegations iiiade in tiie claimant's declaration, testi- 
m.oijy v.ill he required iti accordance with the foUomng rules: 

1. The claimant's identity must he proved by two witnesses, certified 
by a judicial officer to be respectable and credible, who are present and 
witness the signatiure of the declarant, and who state, upon oath or affir- 
mation, their belief, either from i^ersonal acquamtance or tor other rea- 
sons given, tliat he or she is the identical person he or she represents 
himself or herself to be. 

2. Every applicant for an invalid pension must, if in his power, pro- 
duce the certificate of the captain, or of some other commissioned officer 
under whom he served, distinctly stating the time and place of the said 
applicant's having been wounded or otherwise disabled, and the nature 
of the disability, and that the said disability arose while he was ia the 
service of the United States and in the line of his duty. 

3. If it be impracticable to obtaiu .such certificate, by reason of the 
death or removal of said officers, it mxist be so stated under oath by the 
applicant, and his averment of the fact proved by persons of known 
respectability, who must state particularly all the Imowledge they may 
possess iu relation to such death or removal; then secondary evidence 
can be received. Iu such case the applicant must produce the testimony 
of at least two credible witnesses, (who were in a condition to know the 
facts about which they testify,) whose good character must be vouched 
for by a judicial officer, or by some one Iniown to the department. The 
Avitnesses must give a minute narrative of the facts in relation to the 
matter, and must show how they obtained a knowledge of the facts to 
which they testify. 

4. The usual certificate of disability for discharge should show the ori- 
gin, character, and degTce of the claimant's disabditj-; but when tha.t is 
wanting or defective, the applicant will be required to be examined by 
some surgeon regTrlarly api)oiated, unless clearly uni^racticable. 

5. The habits of the applicant, and his occupation siuce he left the ser- 
\ace shoidd be shown by at least two creditable witnesses. 

If the api)licant claims a pension as the widow of a deceased officer or 
soldier, she miist prove the legality of her marriage and the death of her 
husband. She must also fiuuish the names and ages of decedent's child- 
ren mider 16 years of age at her husband's decease, and the place of their 
residence. On a subsequent marriage her pension will cease, and the 
minor child or children of the deceased officer or soldier, if any be living, 
under the age of 16 years, will be entitled to the same in her stead, from 
the date of such marriage, on the requisite proof, under a new declara- 
tion. Proof of the maniage of the parents and of the age of claimants 



\vill be required in all applications in behalf of minor childi-en, if such 
e\'idence has not been liled in a prior claiui. The legality of the mar- 
riage, in either case, may be ascertained by the affidavit of the clergy- 
man or magistrate who joined them in wedlock, or by the testimony of 
respectable persons ha^^ng knowledge of the fact, in defixulfc .of record 
evidence, which must always be fiu-nished, ov its absence shomi. The 
ages and niunber of children may be ascertained by the deposition of tlie 
mother, accompanies! by the testimo4y of respectable persons having 
knowledge of them, or by transcripts from the parish or town registers, 
duly authenticated. 

A mother or father to be entitled to a pension, as having been wholly 
or partly dependent on a deceased officer, soldier, or seaman, must prove 
that the latter contributed to her, or his, support for a certain period, 
showing specifleally in what manner and to what es;t.cn,t'., 

If the claimant foe a brother or sister, lUie pj-pof -will be reqiured of the 
xaarriage of parents, of relationsliip to the deeeot*ed, and of dependence. 

Guardians of minor claimants must, in fill cases, produce evidence of 
their authority as stich, imder the geal of the coiu't from which their 
appointment is obtained. 

AppUcants of the last five classes heretofore enumerated, who have in 
any manner aided or abetted the rebellion against the United States 
government, are not entitled to the benefits of these acts. 

Invalid appUcants who are minora must apply in their own behalf, 
without the intei'vention of a guardian. 

Attorneys for claimants must have propei' a-uthority from those in whfrS^ 
Taehalf they appear. Powers of attorney miigt be^ signed in the presence . 
of two witnesses, and acknowledged before a duly qusJ-ified officer, whosOj 
official character must be certified unde;' seal, 

In all cases the post office address of thp claimant must be dlg^nctJ;^ 
stated over his or her proper signature. 

Applications under this act wiU be numbered ^nd acloiQwledged, to bg 
acted on in their tiu^n. In ffliag additional evidence, correspondeiit.'^ 
should always give the number of the claim, the name of the clai^jiir 
and the post office address at the time the claim was originally %^i, 

MATT PENSIONS. 

The foregoiag instpuctiops, with obvious variations, are applir 
navy cases. In addition thereto, the folio wijig is subjoifl^dj 

The surgeon's certificate for discharge should shQw the 
and degree of the claimant's disability; but when that is w 
when tl)* certificate qf a payy sirrgeon or of a b,o^r4 of f 
obtaiui^ble, that fact niust; be satisfactorily expla,^ne(^, an(' 
of two respectable civU surgeons wiU be r^tieiy^^, in 
form P. These surgeons must give in their certificate a ' 
^ion of tlje wound, injury, or disease, an(J specify lio'^ 
per Ws present condition an<!, ^sabilil^ aje CQaper 



degree of disability for obtaining subsistence by mannal labor must also 
be stated. The certificates of civil sui-geous should be forwarded with 
the declaration. 



ACT OF JULY 14, 1862. 

The foregoing insti'uctions comprise all exijlanations required by the 
act of July 14, 1862. 



ACT OF JULY 4, 1864. 



Attention is especially directed to the following particulars in which 
previous legislation and official practice have been modified: 

1. Biennial Examinations. — The biennial examinations of invalid 
pensioners, required by the act of March 3, 1859, will hereafter be made 
by one surgeon only, if he is regularly appointed, or holds a surgeon's 
commission in the army. In no case will an examination by unappointed 
ci\Tl surgeons be accepted, unless it is satisfactorily shown by the affi- 
davit of one or more disiuterested and credible witnesses, giving the rea- 
sons for siich asseveration, that an examination by a commissioned or duly 
aijpoiated surgeon is impracticable. On such proof, the certificate of 
two unappointed civil siu'geons will be accei^ted in the same manner as 
heretofore. Fe«s paid to unappointed examining surgeons will not be 
refimded. Fees of appointed surgeons wiU be paid directly by pension 
agents, under j)rescribed regulations, and not by the pensioner, (to be 
afterwards refimded,) as under the act of 1802. 

2. Deolabations. — AU declarations of claimants residing within 25 
miles of any court of record must, without exception, be made before 
such court, or before some ofiicer thereof having custody of its seal. 
For the convenience of iiersons residing more than 25 miles distant from 
any court of record, offlcers qualified by law to administer oaths may be 
designated by the Commissi(mer of Pensions, before whom such declara- 
tions shall be executed. 

3. Increased Pensions in Certain Cases.— A pension of S25 per 
month is granted to those having lost both hands or both eyes in the 
military service of the United States, in the line of duty, and $20 per 
month to those who, under the same conditions, shall have lost both feet, 
if such parties were entitled to a lower rate of pension under the act of 
18G2. This higher pension will date only fi'om the 4th day of July, 1864, 
in the case of pensioners already enrolled, or of applicants discharged 
prior to that date.. 

4. COMJIENCEIVIENT OF PENSIONS WHEN APPLICATIONS ARE DELAYED 

MORE THAN THREE YEARS. — lu all cases in which the application is filed 
more than three years after the discharge or decease of the jierson on 
whose accomit the claim is made, the pension, if allowed, will commence 
at the date of filing the last paper in support of such claim. Claims filed 
before July 4, 1864, must be prosecuted to a final issue within three yeara 
from that date, and those filed subsequently to July 4, 1864, must be 
prosecuted to a final issue within five years from the date of filing, or 
they mil thereafter be rejected, in the absence of satisfactory record e\i- 
deuce from the War Department in support of such claim. 



[By the sixth section of the act of July 27, 1SC8, it is pro\'ided that in 
case the application is iiled within Jive years after the title to pension 
accrued, the same shall commence from the discharge or from the death 
of the person on -whose account the pension is claimed, if disability or 
death was iacmTed subsequent to March 4, 1861.] 

5. Widow's Pension not Renewable after Eemaeeiage. — The 
remairiage of a widow terminates all claim to the pension from the date 
of such remarriage, although she may again become a widow. 

6. Special Examinations of Pensioners.— Special examina,tions 
of pensioners will be ordered at such times as the interests of the gov- 
ernment may seem to requii-e; and such examinations, subject to an 
appeal to a board of three appointed surgeons, will take precedence of 
all previous examinations. 

7. Pensions to Unenlisted Men, or to their Dependents, in 
Certain Cases. — Persons disabled by wounds received in battle while 
temporarily serving with any regularly organized military or naval force 
of the United States, since March 4, 1861, but not regularly enlisted, and 
the widows, dependent mothers or sisters, or minor children under six- 
teen years of age, of those who, serving in lilie manner, have been or 
may be killed, are entitled, on satisfactory proof, to the benefits of the 
act of July 14, 1862, on the conditions therein prescribed. Claims of 
this character must be filed and established prior to Jidy 4, 1867. 

[By the eleventh section of the act of July 27, 1868, the limitation of 
the above provision is extended to July 4, 1872.] 

Proof of service, in cases arising under the ninth section of the act of 
July 4, 1864, must be furnished by a commissioned ofticer under or with 
whom such unenlisted person served, showing the nature, period, and 
circumstances of such service. Proof as to the disabiUty or death of 
a person so serving must be shown in the same manner, when practica- 
ble, or by the affidavits of two non-commissioned officers or privates in 
the same service, with evidence that proof by a commissioned officer is 
impracticable. If the officer fiurnishing such e^^dence is not at the time 
in the service, his certificate must be didy sworn to and his signatiire 
authenticated. 

8. Commencement of Widows' Pensions in Certain Cases, — 
When an applicant entitled to an invalid pension dies during tiie pend- 
ency of his claim, leaving a widow or dependent relative entitied to 
receive a pension by reason of his service and death, such pension will 
commence from the date at which the invalid pension would have com- 
menced if admitted while the claimant was living. 

9. Evidence of Muster-in. — In accordance with the eleventh sec- 
tion of the act of July 4, 1864, evidence of the muster-in of the soldier 
will not be required in any case, but there must be j)ositive record evi- 
dence of service, except in such cases as are embraced within the pro- 
%-isions of the ninth section of the said act. The eleventh section applies 
only to enlisted soldiers. Evidence of muster in the case of commissioned 
officers is still required. 

10. Pees of Claim Agents. — Claim agents are prohibited, under 
severe penalt}-, from receiving more than ten dollars in all for their ser- 
vices in prosecuting any pension claim, or from receiving any part of 
such fee in advance, or any percentage of any claim, or any portion 
thereof, for pension or bounty. 

11. Proof of Marriage of Colored Soldiers' Widows. — To 
establish the marriage of the alleged widow of any colored soldier, evi- 



ilence of habitual recogiiition of the marriage relation between the par- 
ties, for two years next preceding the soldier's enlistment, must be fur- 
nished by the affida^-its of at least two credible witnesses ; provided, 
however, if such parties resided in any State in which their marriage 
may have been legally solemnized, the usual evidence shall be reqiured. 
The widow or childreu, claiming the benefits of this provision, must be 
free persons. (See section 14, act of June 6, 1866.) 



ACT OF MARCH 3, 1865. 

The fii'st and third sections of the act of March 3, 1865, are repealed 
by the act of June 6, 1866, herewith published. 

1. AssiSTAKT OR CONTRACT SiTRGEONS.— By the second section of 
the act of March 3, 1865, acting assistant (or "contract") surgeons who, 
in certain specified cases and under certain limitations, become dis- 
abled, are entitled to the benefit of the pension laws the same as though 
they had been mustered into service with the rank of assistant surgeon. 

The widows or dependent relatives of siich oflicers are only entitled to 
the benefits of the pension laws, provided the said officers died while in 
the service. 

The fourth section of the act of March 3, 1865, provides for the allow- 
ance of pensions to minor childi'en less than sixteen years of age, luider 
certain circiunstances not definitely provided for in the previous acts. 
The limitations dependent on the date of application and of filling the 
last proof are to be construed in connection with the sixth section of the 
act of July 27, 1868.. 

2. Pensions to Chaplains. — The second section of the act approved 
April 9, 1864, provides for pensions to chaplains and their widows and 
dependent relatives, and is as follows : 

" The act approved July 14, 1862, is hereby so amended as to include 
chaplains in the regiilar and volunteer forces of the army : Provided^ 
That the pension to which chaplains shall be entitled for a total disabil- 
ity shall be $20 per month, and aU the provisions of the act to which this 
section is an amendment shall apply to and embrace the widows, chil- 
dren, mothers, and sisters of chaplains of the land forces who have died 
since the foiurth day of March, 1861, or shall die of wounds or tliseases 
contracted in the service of the United States, and while such chaplaias 
are or shall be in the line of their duty." 



ACT OF JUNE 6, 1866. 

1. Increase OP Pensions. — The supplementary pension act approved 
June 6, 1866, provides increased rates of pensions over those gTanted by 
the act of July 14, 1862, in the following cases, viz : 

Twenty -five dollars per month to aU those invalids entitled, under the 
act of Jiily 14, 1862, to a lower rate of pension, on account of service ren- 
dered since March 4, 1861, " who shall have lost the sight of both ^es, 
or who shall have lost both hands, or been permanently and totally dis- 
abled in the same, or otherwise so permanently and totally disabled as 



to render theni titterly helpless, or so nearly so as to require the constant 
l)ersonal aid and attendance of another person." 

[By the twelfth section of the act of July 27, 1868, a pension of $25 is 
allowed to those having totally lost their sight, although one eye had 
been lost prior to enlistment.] 

Twenty dollars per month to those iavaUds who, being entitled under 
like conditions to a lower rate of pension, " shaU have lost both feet, or 
one hand and one foot, or been totally and permanently disabled iu the 
same, or otherwise so disabled as to be incapacitated for performing any 
manual labor, but not so much so as to require constant personal aid 
and attentioB." 

Fifteen dollars per month to those invalids who, under Uke conditions, 
^' shall have lost one hand or one foot, or been totally and permanently 
disabled in the same, or otherwise so disabled as to render thek inability 
to perform manual labor equivalent to the loss of a hand or foot." 

In order to obtain the benefits of the foregoing provisions, pensioners 
already enrc^ed will file an application in accordance with form F, 
appended to this circular. Proof in addition to that on file with the 
previous application need not be forwarded, except as shall be specially 
reqvured in each case, after the application is received. The applicant 
need only be examined by a pension surgeon when expressly requiied 
on due notice from this office. Applicants not akeady pensioned, who 
believe themselves entitled to the benefit of the foregoing provisions, 
will specifically set forth such claim in their declarations, carefully 
stating the nature of the disability on account of which such higher rate 
of pension is claimed. The declaration must be made before some officer 
of a coirrt of record, or before a pension notary designated by this office, 
as provided by the third section of the act of July 4, 18G4. 

The above-specified increased rates of pension will date only ft'om the 
6th day of June, 1S66. 

2. Pensions not Assignable or Liable to ATTACHsrENT. — The 
second and third sections of the act of June 6, 1866, are applicable to aU 
pensions granted under the various acts of Congress. By the provisions 
of the second section, pensions are secured to the exclusive use and 
benefit of the pensioners. Any "j)ledge, mortga;ge, sale, assignment, or 
transfer of any right, claim, or interest in any pension," is declared void 
and of no effect. Any jierson other than the j)ensioner, who may receive 
any payment of a pension, is required to disclaim, under oath, any in- 
terest, by pledge, mortgage, sale, assignment, or transfer, in the money 
to be received, or any knowledge or belief that the same has been so dis- 
posed of to any person ; and the penalty of jjerjury is affixed for falsely 
taking the oath so required. 

The thii'd section fixes a penalty for the offence of post-dating vouch- 
ers required in drawing pensions. It further provides that no pension 
money shall be -^ liable to attachment, levy, or seizure by or under any 
legal or equitable process whatever, whether the same remains with the 
Pension Office, or any officer or agent thereof, or is in coui-se of trans- 
mission to the pensioner entitled thereto, but shall inure whoUy to the 
Tsenefit of such pensioner." 

3. Pees for Drawing Pensions PtESTRiCTED.— The fourth section 
of the act prohibits, imder penalty, the receiving of more than twenty- 
five cents for preparing the necessary vouchers for drawing a semi- 
annual payment of any pension, and fixes the fee receivable by any pen- 
sion agent for administering an oath to a pensioner, or his attornej'-in- 
faet, at fifteen cents. 



10 

4. Pensions Contintied to Pensioners enteeing Cmx Service. 
— The fifth seetiou uncouclitionally repeals that provision of the act of 
March 3, 1865, by which pensions were withheld from certain pensioners 
in civil employment under the government. Persons desirhig the benefit 
of this repeal will make application for a "renewal" of their pensions as 
in other cases, filing an examining surgeon's certificate showing their 
present disability, except in the case of those exempt from biennial ex- 
amination. The restored pension will date only from the passage of 
this act. 

5. iNTAiiD Pension Certificates issued apter Death op Ap- 
plicants. — The sixth section gives validity to a certificate issued after 
the death of an applicant for an invalid pension, if he left neither widow 
nor minor child entitled to a pension by reason of his death, provided 
the application was pending and the proof complete at the time of his 
death. This section is construed as. retroactive in its oj)eration, and 
consequently it applies to certificates already issued which come within 
the Umitations si^ecifled, preAdous legislation having provided for the 
cases in which the deceased left a widow or minor children entitled to a 
pension on his behalf. 

[By the idnth section of the act of July 27, 1868, the parties above 
entitled may complete the proof after the death of the applicant, and 
receive the accrued pension.] 

6. Eanjc Eecognized without Muster in Certain Cases. — The 
seventh section recognizes the rank conferred by a commission, so far as 
pensions are concerned, without an actual muster into such rank, pro- 
Yided the failure to be mustered was not through the neglect or refusal 
of the person commissioned. The proviso renders it necessary that, be- 
fore an application invoMng this question is allowed, the reason why 
the offtcer was not dioly mustered should be shown, the best proof of 
which will be the af&davit of the proper mustering officer, or of a supe- 
rior officer having personal knowledge of the facts. 

7. Oppicers and Enlisted Men on Sick Furlough. — OfiBcers 
absent on sick leave, and enlisted men on sick furlough, are, iu accord- 
ance with the eighth section, to be regarded in the same manner as if 
they were in the field or in hospital. This section will not be construed, 
however, as bringing within the intent of the pension laws any cause of 
disability or death altogether apart from the mUitary or naval serA-ice, 
and resisting neither directly nor indirectly therefrom. 

8. Constructive Extension of the Period of Service. — The 
ninth section treats the period of service, in the army or navy, as ex- 
tending to the date of the actual disbandment of the organization to 
which the party belonged, except in the case of discharge for other cause 
than the expiration of the term of service of such organization. 

9. Teamsters, Artificers, and Other Enlisted Men, not em- 
braced in the terms of the act of July 14, 1862, or of acts supplementary 
thereto, are, by the tenth section of the act of June 6, 1866, included in 
the administration of the pension laws, in the class of non-commissioned 
offtcers and privates. 

10. Minor Children to be Pensioned in Certain Cases instead 
OF THE Widow. — The eleventh section provides that when any widow, 
entitled to a pension imder previous acts, has abandoned the care of a 
child or children of her deceased husband, under 16 years of age, " or is 
an unsuitable i^erson, by reason of immoral conduct, to have the custody 
of the same," the pension shall be paid to the duly authorized guardian 
of such child or children, while under the age of 16 years, and not to the 



11 

widow. The proper proof in such case, as provided by this section^ is 
the certificate of the judge of any court having probate jurisdiction 
"that satisfactory evidence has been produced before such court" to the 
effect above indicated. In presenting an application under this section 
the guardian^ of the minor child or children will make a declaration in 
accordance with the appended form G. 

[By section eight of the act of July 27, 18GS, the provision reqxiiring 
a certificate of a judge of a court, in order to susi)end a claim, is an- 
nulled, and the matter left to the discretion of the Commissioner.J 

11. Pensions Granted to Dependent Fathers and to Depetto- 
ENT Orphan Brothers. — By the twelfth section the provisions of the 
act of July 14, 1862, are extended so as to inchide the dependent brother 
or brothers of a deceased officer, soldier, or seaman, and the dependent 
father of such deceased persons, under like limitations as apply in the 
case of dependent sisters and mothers; but not more than one pension 
is granted on account of the same person, or to more than one of said 
classes. The forms prescribed for the latter cases may be used, with 
obvious variations, in applications made by dependent fathers, or on be- 
half of dependent brothers. 

[By section one of the act of July 27, 1868, it is required that minor 
brothers and sisters shall be pensioned jointly, and that dependent 
fathers shall have precedence of both.] 

12. LmiTATIONS AS TO NUIVIBER AND DATE OF PENSIONS. — TllB 

thirteenth section declares that but one pension shall be granted to any 
person at the same time ; and that when application is not made within 
three yeai's after the death or discharge of the party on whose accoimt 
a pension is claimed, such pension, if allowed, " shall commence from the 
date of filing the last pajjer in said case by the party prosecuting the 
same." This li mi tation applies to all classes of pensions. 

[The above provision is annulled by the sixth section of the act of July 
27, 1868, and five years allowed after the death or discharge of said 
Ijarty, in which to make application.] 

13. Evidence of Marriage of Colored Applicants. — The four- 
teenth section provides that habitual recognition of the marriage relation 
between colored parties — ^that is, in the absence of the usually required 
proof— when shown by "proof satisfactory to the Commissioner of Pen- 
sions," shall be accepted as evidence of manlage, and the children of 
such parties shall be regarded as if born in lawfiil wedlock. When the 
usual proof of marriage can be ftimished, it will be required as hereto- 
fore. "When only evidence of cohabitation and mutual recognition can 
be adduced, as provided in this section, the testimony of two credible 
and disinterested witnesses will be required, who must state how long 
they have been personally acquainted with the parties, and for how long 
a period the latter are known to have recognized each other as man and 
wife. If such acquaintance is deemed to be of too recent date to warrant 
the acceptance of this testimony, or if there is reason to doubt, in any 
instance, that the marriage relation existed in good faith, more specific 
instructions will be issued, adapted to the circumstances of the particu- 
lar case. 



12 



ACT OF JULY 25, 1866. 



1. Provost Marshals, Enrolling- Officers, and Others, Enti- 
tled TO THE Benefits of the Pension Latv^s.— The first section of tlie 
act of Jiily 25, 1806, extends tlie benefits conferred by the pension laws 
to provost marshals, deputy provost marshals, and enrolling officers dis- 
abled in the line of oflicial duty as such, and to the widows or depend- 
ents of such officers in like manner. 

Declarations will be made in accordance with the instructions issued 
under the pension act of July 14, 1862, and supx^lementary acts. The 
grade of such officers, for the purpose of determining the rates of pen- 
sions under this section, is fixed as follows : Provost marshals wUl rank 
as captaia, their deputies as first lieutenants, and enrolling officers as 
second lieutenants. 

2. Increased Pensions to Widows and Orphan Children under 
Sixteen Years of Age. — The second section of this act allows to 
those who are or shall be pensioned as widows of soldiers or sailors, $2 
per month additional pension for each child (under 16 years of age) of 
the deceased soldier or sailor by the "widow thus pensioned. 

[By section four of the act of July 27, 1868, provision is made for the 
extension of such increase to children by a former wife.] 

On the death or remarriage of such widow, or on the denial of a pen- 
sion to her, in accordance with the provisions of section eleven of the 
act of June 6, 1866, the same amount to which she would otherwise be 
entitled, under this and previous provisions, is allowed to the minor 
children. The number and names of the children, with their ages, must 
be ijroved, as heretofore requu-ed in apiolications for minors by guardians. 

The widows or minor children of officers are not entitled to this iucrease. 
Dependent mothers and minor sisters and brothers are also excluded. 

[See Commissioner's decision iu instructions, under section fourth of 
act of July 27, 1868.] 

Declarations for an increase under this section or its amendments, if 
for the widow, will be made in accordance with form H, appended to this 
circular ; and if for minor children, according to form I. In cases where 
no application for original pension has been made by the widow, her 
declaration should accord with form K. 

3. Increase of Pensions under Acts prior to July 14, 1862. — 
All pensioners under acts approved prior to July 14, 1862, are, by the 
third section of the present act, granted the same rights as those pen- 
sioned imder acts approved at or since that date, so far as said acts may 
be applicable, with the exception of soldiers of the Revolution, or their 
widows. This section applies only to pensioners who were such at the 
date of the approval of this act. 

[By section thirteen of the act of July 27, 1868, it is pro\aded that wid- 
ows of revolutionary soldiers, now recei\'ing a less simi, shall be entitled 
to $8 per month.] 

Declarations of claimants under this section will be made in accord- 
ance with the forms herewith issued, with the necessary modifications, 
and the iiension certificates Avill be returned. 

4. Invalid Pensions op Claimants dying while their Applica- 
tions ARE Pending, the Evidence being Completed.— The foiu-th 
section of this act is construed in connection mth the tenth section of 



13 

ibe act di" Jitly 4, ls64j and the sixtli section of tlio act of Jime 6, 18G6, 
to wliicli it is supplementary. If au applicant for an invalid pension dies 
AvhUe liis claim is pending, the evidence having been completedj- the pen- 
sion, under the proAJsions of this sectioUj and of those sections of pre- 
vious octs ^bow. retbvred tO) is disposed of as follows : 

1. If he left a Widow, or minor child or childi-en under 16 years of age, 
or other dependent relatives, and died of Avounds received, or of disease 
contracted, in the service and in the line of duty, no invalid pension cer- 
titirate wiU issue, but such Midow or dependent relatives will receive a 
pension, in their own right, taking precedence in the order prescribed by 
law in other cases. — (See section 10, act of Jidy 4, 1S64.) 

2. If the claimant left a widow or dependent relatives, but did not die 
of wounds received or disease contracted in the service and iu the line 
of duty, so that neither widow nor dependent relatives woidd be entitled 
to a ijension on his accomit, then the certificate AviU be issued in his 
name, and the pension paid to the Avidow, or to the dependent relatives, 
as the ca«e may be, in the same order in which they would have been 
pensioned if entitled as set forth in the preceding paragxaph. 

3. If the claimant left no AsddoAV or dependent relatives, the certificate 
wiU issue in his name, and the pension Avill be di'awn by his executor or 
administrator. 

[The ninth section of the act of Jidy 27, 1868, i>rovides that in case o^ 
a person entitled to pension dying subsequent to March 4, 1861, while 
au application is pending, and leaAong no Avidow or minor child, the 
requirement of completion of proof before death is dispensed Avith.] 

5. Certain Acoeued Eights Eeserved under Eepealed Enact- 
3IENTS. — The fifth section i-eserves all rights that may have accrued 
under the fifth section of the pension act of Jidy 4, 1864, and the third 
section of the pension act of March 3, 1865, though repealed by the first 
section of the act of Jime 6, 1866. 

Wldoavs a\''ho Eemaret while their Glaevis are Pending are enti- 
tled, under the sixth section, if their claims are otherAvise valid, to reeeiA^e 
l')eusions to the date of remarriage, if the deceased officer, soldier or sailor 
on whose account they claim left no legitimate child under 16 years of 



ACT OF JULY 27, 1868. 

Section 1. Dependent Eelatites. — By this section precedence is 
giA^en to the dependent relatives hereinafter mentioned in the folloAving 
order, to ynt : First, mothers ; second, fathers ; third, orphan brothers 
and sisters under 16 years of age, entitled jointly ; and the title of each 
of the above classes of claimants accrues ux)on the death of the one pre- 
ceding. See forms D and E. 

Sec. 2. Disabilities incurred subsequent to July 27, 1868. — 
This section proAddes for ]oensions by reason of disabilities incurred sub- 
sequent to the passage of this act; and specifies the circumstances under 
AA'hich said disabilities must have been contracted in order to effect a 
title. 

Sec. 3. Uncladied Pensions.— This section provides that pensions 
remaining unclaimed for fourteen months after the same have become due 
may be paid at the pension agency instead of at the offices of the Third 
and Foui-th Auditors, as heretofore provided ; that failure to claim such 



14 

pension for three years shall be presumptive evidence tliat the same has 
legally terminated ; and that on a new application, Mith evidence satis^ 
factorily accounting for such failxu'e, the pensioner may be restored to 
the rolls. See form L. 

Sec. 4. Increase op Pensions to Minors by FoiijviER. Wife.— By 
this section the increase of $2 per mouth for each minor chUd of a deceased, 
soldier, provid;'d for by section 2, act of July 2.5, 1860, is extended to 
include all the legitimate children of such soldier ; and provides that the 
children of a former marriage, (the soldier "leaving a -widow, entitled 
to a pension,") shall be "entitled to receive two dollars per month, to 
commence from the death of their father, and continue until they sever- 
ally attain the age of 16 years, to be paid to the guardian of such child 
or childi-en for their use and benefit : Provided, Iwwever, That in all cases 
where such widow is charged with the care, custody, and maintenance 
of such child or children, the said siun of two dollars per month for 
each of said children shall be paid to her for and during the time she is, 
or may have been, so charged|with the care, custody, and maintenance 
of such child or children, subject to the same conditions, provisions, and 
limitations as if they were her own children by her said deceased hus- 
band. 

Sec. 5. Minoe. Chtldeen in chabitable Institutions. — This sec- 
tion provides that no widow or guardian to whom an increase of pension 
has been, or may be, gTanted on account of minor children, shall be 
deprived thereof by reason of their being wholly, or in part, maintained 
or educated at the expense of the State or of the public. 

Sec. 6. Extension of Time for Application. — By this section, all 
pensions applied for within five years after the right thereto shall have 
accrued, and which have been or may be, granted under the act of Jidy 
14, 1862, or acts supplementary thereto, shall commence from the dis- 
charge or death of the person on whose account the pension has been, or 
shall be, granted ; and in cases of insane persons and minors, who were 
without guardians or other legal representatives previous to said liaiitit- 
tion, applications may be filed in their behalf after its expiration. See 
form M. This section applies only to cases in which title to pension has 
accrued subsequent to March 4, 1861. Allowance or arrears, under this 
section, is to be graded in amount according to the original certificate. 
A pensioner, under special act of Congress, is not entitled to arrears 
under this section. 

Sec. 7. Patiment of Arrears. — This section provides for notification 
of title to arrears of pension under the preceding section, and that no 
person shall be entitled to compensation for making application for such 
arrears. In order to identify the claimant the subjoined form M shoidd 
be followed by applicants under section six, and executed before a coiirt 
of record, as in other cases. 

Sec. 8. Amendment of Section 11, Act of June 6, 1866. — This sec- 
tion dispenses with the requirement of the certificate of the court that 
satisfactory evidence has been adduced of the abandonment of the care 
of minor child or children of a deceased soldier by his ^^ddow, or of her 
unfitness to have custody of them ; and that the presentation of satisfac- 
tory evidence thereof to the Commissioner shall suffice for the suspension 
of said -widow's pension. 

Sec. 9. AMEND3IENT OF SECTION 6, ACT OF JUNE 6, 1866, AND SEC- 
TION 4, Act OP July 25, 1866. — By this section the title to accrued pen- 
sion of a person dying while application is pending is vested in the heirs 
or legal representatives, pro^•ided that no widow or minor child siu'vives 
the applicant, and the reqiurement of completion of proof before death is 
dispensed with. 



15 

(T 
. Sec. 10. Pension to D'Ate of Eemaeeiage. — This section provides 
for allowauce of pension to widow, (m ease no children imder 16 years of 
age survive,) or dependent mother, troni death of soldier, to date of claim- 
ant's remarriage. If pensions have already been gTanted, applications 
for the arrears under this section should accord with form M. Other- 
wise form B or D should be followed. 

Sec. 11. Extension of LranTATioN of Unenlisted Men ok their 
Dependents. — By tlus section the provisions of the 9th section of the 
act of July 4, 1864, are continued in force until July 4, 1872. 

Sec. 12. Pension for Loss of One Bye. — ^This section provides for 
the allowance of a pension of $25 for total loss of sight by reason of 
wounds or disease contracted in the service, though the pensioner had 
the sight of but one eye upon entering the service. See form F. 

Sec. 13. Amendment to Section 3, Act of July 25, 1866. — ^This 
section places aU persons pensioned on account of services rendered 
since the war of the Revolution, and prior to March 4, 1861, on the same 
footing with those pensioned under the act of July 14, 1862, and acts sub- 
sequent thereto ; and gTants $S per month to the widows of revolutionary' 
soldiers now pensioned at less than that amouat. See form S". 

Sec. 14. Artificial Limbs to Officers. — ^This section entitles cap- 
tains in the army and lieutenants in the navy, and officers of iuferior 
rank, who have lost a leg or arm in the service, to receive an artificial 
limb upon the same terms as privates in the army. 

Sec. 15. Special Act Pensions. — This section provides that all pen- 
sions granted under special acts shall be graded ia amount accorduig to 
the provisions and limitations of the general pension laws. 

Sec. 16. EiEPEALiNG Clause. — ^This section comprises the customary 
repeal of inconsistent provisions of former acts. 

Declarations ia applications for pensions under this act should be made 
in accordance with the forms herewith issued, and invariably before a 
court of record or pension notary. 

CHRIS. C. COX, 
Commissioner of Pensions. 

August 13, 1868. 



ACT OF JULY 14, 1862. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and Souse of Representatives of the United 



of America in Congress ass&tnhled, That if any officer, non-commis- 
sioned officer, musician, or juivate of the army, uicludiug regulars, vol- 
unteers, and militia, or any officer, warrant or petty oiflcer, musician, 
seaman, ordinary seaman, flotiUaman, marine, clerk, landsman, pilot, or 
other person in the navy or marine corps, has been, since the fourth day 
of March, eighteen hundred and sixty-one, or shall hereafter be, disabled 
by reason of any wound received or disease contracted whUe in the ser- 
vice of the United States, and in the line of duty, he shall, uj)on maldug 
due proof of the fact according to such forms and regulations as are or 
may be provided by or in piu'suance of law, be placed upon the list of 
iavahd pensions of the United States, and be entitled to receive, for the 
highest rate of disability, such pension as is hereinafter provided ia such 
cases, and for an inferior disability an amount proportionate to the 
highest disability, to commence as hereinafter provided, and continue 
dittiug the existence of such disability. The pension for a total disa- 
bility for officers, non-commissioned officers, musicians, and privates 



16 

employed in tlie military sendee of the United States, wlietlier regnilars^ 
volimteers, or militia, and in the marine corps, shall be as follows, viz : ■ 
Lieutenant colonel, and all oflicers of a higher rank, thirty dollars per 
month ; major, twenty-five dollars per month ; captain, twenty dollars 
per month ; first lieutenant, seventeen dollars per month ; second lieu- 
tenant, fifteen dollars per month ; and non-commissioned officers, mvisi- 
cians, and privates, eight doUars i^er month. The pension for total dis- 
ability for officers, warrant or petty officers, and others emi^loyed in 
the naval service of the United States, shall be as foUows, viz : Captaia, 
commander, siu'geon, paymaster, and chief engineer, respectively, rank- 
ing with commander by law, lieutenant commanding, and master com- 
manding, thirty doUars per month ; lieutenant, siurgeon, paymaster, and 
chief engineer, respectively, ranking -with lieutenant by law, and passed 
assistant surgeon, twenty-five dollars per month ; j)rofessor of mathe- 
matics, master, assistant siirgeon, assistant paymaster, and chaplain, 
twenty dollars jyer month ; first assistant engineers and pilots, fifteen 
doUars per month ; passed midshipman, midshipman, captain's and pay- 
master's clerk, second and third assistant engineer, master's mate, and aU 
warrant officers, ten doUars per month ; aU petty officers, and aU other 
persons before named employed in the naval service, eight doUars per 
month; and aU commissioned officers, of either service, shaU receive 
such and only such pension as is herein provided for the rank in which 
they hold commissions. 

Sec. 2. And be it furtJier enacted, That if any officer or other person 
named in the first section of this act has died since the fourth day of 
March, eighteen hundred and sixty-one, or shaU hereafter die, by reason 
of any wound received or disease contracted while in the ser-sdce of the 
United States, and in the line of duty, his widow, or, if there be no 
widow, his cMld or chUdren under sixteen years of age, shaU be entitled 
to receive the same pension as the husband or father would have been 
entitled to had he been totally disabled, to commence from the death 
of the husband or father, and to contiaue to the widow dirring her widow- 
hood, or to the chUd or children until they severaUy attain to the age of 
sixteen years, and no longer. 

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That where any officer or other per- 
son named in the first section of this act shaU have died subsequently to 
the foiu'th day of March, eighteen hundred and sixty-one, or shall here- 
after die, by reason of any wound received or disease contracted whUe 
in the service of the United States, and in the line of duty, and has not 
left nor shaU not leave a widow nor legitimate chUd, but has left or shaU 
leave a mother who was dejiendent ui^on him for support, in whole or in 
part, the mother shaU be entitled to receive the same pension as such 
officer or other person would have been entitled to had he been totaUy 
disabled ; which pension shaU commence from the death of the officer or 
other person dying as aforesaid : Provided, however. That if such mother 
shaU herself be in receipt of a pension as,a widow, in virtue of the pro- 
visions of the second section of this act, in that case no pension or aUow- 
ance shaU be granted to her on account of her son, unless she gives up 
the other pension or aUowance: And provided further. That the pension 
given to a mother on accoimt of her son shaU terminate on her remar- 
riage : And provided further, That nothing herein shaU be so construed 
as to entitle the mother of an officer or other person dying, as aforesaid, 
to more than one pension at the same time under the provisions of 
this act. 

Sec. 4. And be it further enacted. That where any officer or other per- 
son named in the iirst section of this act shaU have died subsequently 



17 

.to tlie foiu'tli clay of March, eighteen hnudred and sixty-one, or shall 
hereafter die, by reason of any wonnd received or disease contracted 
while in the service of the United States, and in the line of duty, and 
has not left or shall not leave a widow, nor legitimate child, nor mother, 
but has left or may leave an orphan sister or sisters, under sixteen years 
of age, who were dependent upon him for support, in whole or in part, 
such sister or sisters shall be entitled to receive the same pension as such 
officer or other person would have been entitled to had he been totally 
disabled; which pension to said orphan shall commence from tJie death 
of the officer or other person dying as aforesaid, and shall continue to 
the said orphans until they severally arrive at the age of sixteen years, 
and no longer : Provided, however, That nothing herein shall be so con- 
strued as to entitle said oriphans to more than one pension at the same 
time, under the provisions of this act: And provided furtJier, That no 
moneys shall be paid to the widow, or children, or any heirs of any 
eleceased soldier on account of bounty, back pay, or pension, who have 
in any way been engaged in or who have aided or abetted the existing 
rebellion in the United States ; but the right of such disloyal widow or 
children, heir or heirs of such soldier, shall be vested in the loyal heir 
or heirs of the deceased, if any there be. 

Sec. 5. And be it further enacted. That pensions which may be granted, 
in pursuance of the provisions of this act, to persons who may have been,. 
or shall be, employed in the military or naval service of the United States, 
shall commence on the day of the discharge of such persons in all cases 
in which the application for such pi'ovisions [pensions] is filed within 
one year after the date of said discharge ; and in cases in Avhich the 
appUcation is not filed dming said year, pensions granted to persons 
employed as aforesaid shall commence on the day of the filing of the 
application. 

Sec. 6. And he it further enacted, That the fees of agents and attorneys 
for making out and causing to be executed the papers necessary to 
establish a claim for a pension, bounty, and other allowance before the 
Pension Office under this act, shall not exceed the following rates : For 
making out and causing to be diily executed a declaration by the appli- 
cant, with the necessary affidavits, and forwarding the same to the Pen- 
sion Office, mth the requisite correspondence, five dollars. In cases 
wlierem additional testimony is requu-ed by the Commissioner of Pen- 
sions, for each affidavit so required and executed and forwarded, (except 
the affidavits of siu'geons, for which such agents and attorneys shall not 
be entitled to any fees,) one dollar and fifty cents. 

Sec. 7. And he it further enacted, That any agent or attorney who shall,^ 
directly or indirectly, demand or receive any greater compensation for 
his services under this act than is prescribed in the preceding section of 
this act, or who shall contract or agree to iDrosecnte any claim for a pen- 
sion, bounty, or other allowance under this act, on the condition that he 
shall receive a per centiun upon, or any portion of the amount of such 
claim, or who shall wrongfully withhold from a pensioner or other claimant 
the whole or any part of the pension or claim allowed and due to such 
pensioner or claimant, shall be deemed guilty of a high misdemeanor, 
and upon conviction thereof shaU for every such oft'ence be fined not 
exceeding three himdred dollars, or imprisoned at hard labor not exceed- 
ing two years, or both, accordiag to the circumstances and aggi-avations 
of the offence. 

Sec. 8. And he it furtJier enacted. That the Commissioner of Pensions 
be, and he is hereby^ empowered to appoint, at his discretion, civil sur- 
geons to make the biennial examinations of pensioners which are or may 
2 I 



18 

be requii-ed to be made by law, and to examine applicants for invalid 
pensions, where lie shall deem an examination by a snrgeon to be 
appointed by him necessary; and the fee for each of such examinations, 
and the requisite certiiicate thereof, shall be one dollar and fifty cents, 
which fee shall be paid to the surgeon by the person examined, for which 
he shall take a receipt and forward the same to the Pension Office ; and 
upon the allowance of the claim of the person examined, the Commis- 
sioner of Pensions shall furnish to such persons an order on the pension 
agent of his State for the amount of the sxu'geon's fees. 

Sec. 9. And be it furtlmr enacted., That the Commissioner of Pensions, 
""on application made to him in person or by letter by any claimants or 
applicants for pension, bounty, or other allowance requu'ed by law to be 
adjusted and paid by the Pension Of&ce, shall furnish such claimants, 
' free of all expense or charge to them, all such printed instructions and 
forms as may be necessary in establishing and obtaining said claim ; and 
in case such claim is prosecuted by an agent or attorney of such claimant 
or applicant, on the issue of a certificate of pension or the granting of 
a bounty or allowance, the Commissioner of Pensions shall forthwith 
notify the applicant or claimant that such certificate has been issued, 
jor allowance made, and the amount thereof. 

Seo. 10. And he it further enacted, That the pilots, engineers, sailors, 
:-and crews iipon the gunboats and war vessels of the United States, who 
iave not been regularly mustered into the service of the United States, 
shall be entitled to the same bounty allowed to persons of corresponding 
rank in the naval service, provided they continue in service to the close 
of the present war ; and aU persons serving as aforesaid, who have been 
or may be wounded or incapacitated for service, shall be entitled to 
receive for such disability the pension allowed by the provisions of this 
act to those of like rank, and each and every such person shall receive 
pay according to corresponding rank in the naval service: Provided, 
That no person receiving pension or bounty under the provisions of this 
act shall receive either pension or bounty for any other service in the 
present war. 

Sec. 11. And he it further enacted, That the widows and heirs of all 
persons described in the last preceding section who have been or may 
be emjiloyed as aforesaid, or who have been or may be killed in battle, 
or of those who have died or shall die of woimds received while so 
employed, shall be paid the bounty and pension allowed by the provisions 
of this act, according to rank, as provided in the last preceding section. 

Sec. 12. A7id be itfurtlier enacted, That the Secretary of the Interior 
be, and he is hereby, authorized to appoint a special agent for the Pen- 
sion Oi3fice, to assist in the detection of frauds against the pension laws, 
to cause persons committing such frauds to be prosecuted, and to dis- 
charge such other duties as said Secretary may require him to perform ; 
which said agent shall receive for his services an annual salary of twelve 
hundred dollars, and his actual travelling expenses inciirred in the dis- 
charge of his duties shall be paid by the government. 

Sec. 13. And he it further enacted. That all acts and parts of acts 
inconsistent with the provisions of this act be, and the same are hereby, 
repealed. 

Approved, July 14, 1863. 



19 



JOINT RESOLUTION TO GRANT PENSIONS TO MASTERS AND OFFICERS 
UPON THE GUNBOATS IN THE SERVICE OP THE UNITED STATES. 

Resolved hy the Senate and House of Eepresenfatives of the United States 
of America in Congress assemMed, That the masters serTing on board of 
gunboats employed in the service of the United States shall be entitled 
to all the benefits, inclnding bounty and pension, provided for in an act 
entitled " An act to gTant pensions," passed during the present session 
of Congress, and the widows, mothers, and heirs of such officers shall 
be entitled to all the benefits of said act. 

Approved, July 16, 1862. 



ACT OP JULY 4, 1861. 

Be it enaoted by tJw Senate and Souse of Representatives of the United 
States of Ameriea in Congress assembUd, That the biennial examinations 
of pensioners required by an act approved March three, eighteen hun- 
dred and fiffcy-nine, may be made by one surgeon only, provided he is a 
surgeon of the army or navy, or an examining surgeon duly appointed 
by the Commissioner of Pensions ; nor shall the biennial certificate of 
two unappointed civil surgeons be accepted in any case, except upon 
satisfactory evidence that an examination by a commissioned or duly 
appointed surgeon is impracticable. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That aU fees paid to examining sur- - 
geons for biennial examinations, or for examinations especially ordered, 
as provided by the eighth section of the act to grant pensions, approved 
July fourteenth, eighteen hundred and sixty-two^ shaU be refunded by 
the agent for paying pensions in the district withm which the pensioner 
or claimant resides, out of any money appropriated for the payment of 
pensions, under such regulations as the Commissioner of Pensions may 
prescribe. 

Sec. 3. And be it further emvcted, That declarations of pension claimants 
shall be made before a court of record, or before some officer thereof 
having custody of its seal, said officer being hereby fully authorized and 
empowered to administer and certify any oath or affirmation relating to 
any pension or application therefor : Provided, That the Commissioner of 
Pensions may designate, in localities more than twenty-five miles distant 
from any place at which such a court is holden, i^ersons duly qualified 
to administer oaths, before whom declarations may be made and testi- 
mony tat en. 

Sec. 4. And be it further enactsd, That section twelve of the act to 
grant pensions, approved Jidy fourteen, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, 
is hereby repealed. And the Commissioner of Pensions is authorized' 
and empowered to detail, from time to time, clerks in his office to inves- 
tigate suspected attempts at fraud on the government through the Pen- 
sion Office, and to aid in prosecuting any person so offending, with such 
additional compensation as is customary in cases of special service. 

Sec. 5. And be it furtlwr enaot-ed, That all persons now by law entitled 
iso a less pension than hereafter specified, who shall have lost both feet 
in the military service of the United States and in the hue of duty, shall 
be entitled to a pension of twenty dollars per month ; and those who, 
under the same conditions, have lost both hands or both eyes, shall bo 
entitled to a pension of twenty-five dollars per month. 

Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That no pension claim now on file, 



20 

iinless prosecuted to a successful issue witliia three years from the pas- 
sage of this act, and uo claim hereafter filed, uot thus prosecuted to a 
siiccessful issue withiu five years from the date of such fihng, shall be 
admitted without satisfactory record e^adence from the War Department 
to establish the same ; and iu every case in which a claim for pension 
shall have been filed more than three years after the discharge or decease 
of the party on whose account the claim is made, the pension, if allowed 
shall commence from the date of filing the last i^aper in said case by the 
l)arty i)rosecutmg the same. 

Sec. 7. And be it further enacted, That on the remarriage of any widow 
receiving a pension, such pension shall terminate, and shall not be renewed 
should she again become a widow. 

Sec. 8. And he it further enacted, That examining surgeons, duly 
appointed by the Commissioner of Pensions, may be required by him 
from time to time, as he shall deem for the interests of the government, 
to make special examinations of pensioners on the rolls of their respec- 
tive districts, and such examinations shall have precedence over previous 
examinations, whether special or biennial ; but when injustice is alleged 
to have been done by any examination so ordered, the Commissioner of 
Pensions may, at his discretion, select a board of three didy appointed 
examining surgeons, who shall meet at a place to be designated by him, 
and shall review such cases as may be ordered before them on appeal 
fi-om any special examination as aforesaid, and the decision of such board 
shall be final on the question so submitted thereto. The compensation 
of all such siu'geons shall not exceed that which has been customarily 
allowed in such cases, and shall be paid out of any appropriations made 
for the payment of pensions, in the same manner as the ordinary fees of 
appointed siu-geons are or may be authorized to be paid. 

Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That those persons, not enlisted sol- 
diers in the army, who volunteered for the time being to serve ^vith any 
regularly organized military or naval force of the United States, or where 
persons otherwise volunteered and rendered service in any engagement 
with rebels or Indians since the fourth day of March, eighteen hiuidred 
and sixty-one, shall, if they have been disabled ia consequence of wounds 
received in battle in such temj)orary service, be entitled to the same bene- 
fits of the pension laws as those who have been regularly mustered into 
the United States service; and the widows or other dependents. of any 
such persons as may have been killed in the temporary service aforesaid 
shall be entitled to pensions in the same manner as they would have been 
had such persons been regidarly mustered : Provided, That no claim under 
thig section shall be valid miless presented and prosecuted to a success- 
ful issue within three years from and after the passage of this act. All 
such claims shall be adjudicated under such special rides and regulations 
as the Commissioner of Pensions may prescribe most effectually to guard 
against fraud. 

Sec. 10. And be it further ena-eted, That if any person entitled to an 
invalid pension under the provisions of the act granting pensions, approved 
July fourteen, eighteen himdred and sixty-two, has died or shall here- 
after die while an application for such pension is pending, and having a 
"widow or dependent relative entitled to receive a pension by reason of 
his ser%'ice and death, as provided in said act, then the pension to such 
widow or other person shall commence from the date at which the dece- 
dent's invalid pension would have commenced had he survived, subject 
to the conditions of this act and the act to which this is amendatory. 

Sec. 11. And be it furtlier enacted, That all enlisted soldiers in the army 
who shall have become disabled in the service, whether they shall have 



21 

been regiilaiiy mnstered iii or not, shall be entitled t« the same benefits 
of the pension laws as tliose who have been regularly mustered into the 
United States service; and the widows or other dependents entitled to 
pensions by laM^, as prescribed by the act of Jidyfomteen, eighteen hun- 
dred and sixty-two, of any siich soldier wlio may have been killed, or 
shall liave died, or shall hereafter die, by rea,son of any wound received or 
disease contracted while in said service and in the line of duty, shall be 
entitled t-o the same perision as though such soldier had been regularly 
mustered into the service. 

Sec. 12. Aiulbe it ftirthcr enacted, That the fees of agents and attorneys 
for making out and causing to be executed the papers necessary to estab- 
lish a claim for a pension, bounty, and other allowance before the Pen- 
sion Office, under this act, shall not exceed the following rates: For 
making out and causing to be duly executed a declaration by the appli- 
«ant, with the necessary affidavits, and forwarding the same to the Pen- 
sion Office, with the requisite corresiiondence, ten doUars; which sum 
shall be received by such agent or attorney in fall for all services in 
obtaining such pension, and shall not be demanded or received in whole 
or in part until such pension shall be obtained ; and the sixth and seventh 
sections of an act entitled "An act to grant pensions," approved July 
fourteenth, eighteen lumilred and sixty-two, are hereby repealed. 

Sec. 13. And be it further etmctcd, That any agent or attorney who 
shall, directly or indirectly, demand or receive any greater compensation 
for his services under this act than is prescribed in the preceding- section 
of this act, or who shall contract or agree to prosecute any claim for a 
pension, bounty, or other allowance, imder tliis act, on the condition that 
he shall receive a per centum upon any portion of the amount of such 
claim, or who shall wrongfully withhold from a pensioner or other claim- 
ant the whole or any part of the pension or claim allowed and due to such 
pensioner or claimant, shall be deemed guilty of a high misdemeanor, 
and upon comdction thereof shaU, for every such offence, be fined not 
exceeding three himdred dollars, or imiwisoned at hard labor not exceed- 
ing two years, or both, according to the circimistances and aggravations 
of the oiience. 

Sec. 14. And he it furtJier enacted, That the widows and children of 
colored soldiers who have been or who may be hereafter killed, or who 
have died, or may hereafter die, of woimds received in battle, or who have 
died or may hereafter die of disease contracted in the military service 
of the United States, and in the line of duty, shall be entitled to receive 
the iiensions now ijrovided by law, without other proof of marriage than 
that the parties had habitually recognized each other as man and wife, 
and lived together as such for a definite period next preceding the sol- 
dier's enlistment, not less than two years, to be shown by the affidavits of 
credible witnesses: Provided, however. That such widow and children are 
free persons : Provided further. That if such parties resided in any State 
in which their marriage may have been legally solemnized, the usual 
evidence shall be required. 

Sec. 15. And be it further enacted. That all acts and parts of acts incon- 
sistent with the provisions of this act are hereby repealed. 

Approved, July 4, 1864. 

Kote. — Several provisions of the foregoing have been repealed or 
modified by the acts of March 3, 1865, Jime 6, and July 25, 1S66, pub- 
lished recently by this office. 



22 



ACT OF MARCH 3, 1865. 



Be it enacted iy the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Gon^jress assembled, That no invalid pensioner, no'W 
or hereafter in the service of the United States, shall be entitled to draw 
a pension for any iieriod of time diu'ing which he is or shall be entitled 
to the full pay or salary which an able-bodied person discharging like 
duties to the government is allowed by law. 

Sec. 2. And he it further enacted, That acting assistant or contract sur- 
geons, disabled by any wound received or disease contracted while actu- 
ally performing the duties of assistant surgeons or acting assistant sur- 
geons with any military force in the field or in transitu, shall be entitled 
to the benefits of the i)ension laws in the same manner as if they had 
actually been mustered into the service with the rank of "assistant sur- 
geon;" and the widows, minor children, or the dependents of acting 
assistant surgeons dying while performing the duty aforesaid, shall, in 
like manner, be entitled to the same benefits of the pension laws as if 
the deceased had been actually mustered into the service as assistant 
surgeons. 

Sec. 3. And he it furtlier enacted., That all persons now by law entitled 
to a less pension than hereafter specified, who shall have lost one foot 
and one hand in the military service of the United States, and iu the Una 
of his (their) duty, shall be entitled to frvventy dollars per month. 

Sec. 4. And he it further enacted. That if any officer or other person 
named in the first section of an act entitled "An act to grant pensions," 
approved July fourteen, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, has died siuce 
the fourth day of March, eighteen hundred and sisty-one, or shaU here- 
after die by reason of any wound received or disease contracted while 
in the service of the United States, and in the line of duty, his widow, 
or if there be no widow, or in case of her death or marriage without pay- 
ment to her of any part of the pension hereinafter mentioned, his child 
or children under sixteen years of age, shall be entitled to receive the 
same pension as the husband or father would have been entitled to 
under said act had he been totally disabled, to commence from the death 
of the husband or father, and to continue to the widow during her 
widowhood, or to the child or children until they severally attain to the 
age of sixteen years, and no longer : Provided, That when such pension 
has been or shall hereafter be paid to the widow, such child or children 
shall only be entitled to receive the pension, to commence from the 
death or marriage of such widow and (to) contiuue as aforesaid : Pro- 
vided furtlier, That nothing herein contained shall be construed to re- 
peal or modify the tenth section of an act entitled "An act supplemen- 
tary to 'An act to grant pensions,' ai)proved Jidy fourteen, eighteen 
hundred and sixty-two," approved Jidy fourth, eighteen hundred and 
sixty-four, and said section is hereby declared to be in full force and 
effect in all cases arising under this act to which said section is applica- 
ble, saving and excepting such cases as are embraced in the preceding 
proviso. 

Approved, March 3, 1865. 



ACT OF JUNE 6, 1806. 

Be it enacted hy the Senate and Souse of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled, That section five of an act enti- 
tled "An act supplementary to an act entitled 'An act to grant pen- 



23 

sious,' approved July tbiu-teeiitli, eigliteeu liuudied aud sixty-two," 
approved Jidy foiutli, eighteen hundred and sixty -foiu-, and section 
three of an act entitled "An act supplementary to the several acts relat- 
ing to pensions," approved ]\Iarch third, eighteen himdred and sLxty- 
five^ be, and the same are hereby, repealed, and the follo-ning shall stand 
ill lieu thereof: That, from and after the passage of this act, all persons 
by law entitled to a less pension than hereinafter specified, who, while 
in the military or naval service, and in line of duty, shall have lost the 
sight of both eyes, or who shall have lost both hands, or been perma- 
nently and totally disabled in the same, or otherwise so permanently and 
totally disabled as to render them utterly helpless, or so neai'ly so as to 
require the constant personal aid and attendance of another person, shall 
be entitled to a pension of twenty-five dollars per month ; anxl all persons 
who, under like cii'cmnstances, shall have lost both feet, or one hand 
and one foot, or been totally and permanently disabled in the same, or 
otherwise so disabled as to be incapacitated for performing any manual 
labor, but not so much so as to require constant personal aid and atten- 
tion, shall be entitled to a pension of twenty dollars per month ; and all 
persons who, under like cii'cumstances, shall have lost one hand or one 
foot, or been totally and permanently disabled in the same, or otherwise 
so disabled as to render their inability to perform manual labor equiva- 
lent to the loss of a hand or a foot, shall be entitled to a pension of 
fifteen dollars per month. 

Sec. 2. A7id he it further enacted, That any pledge, mortgage, sale, 
assignment, or transfer of any right, claim, or interest in any pension 
which has been, or may hereafter be, granted, shall be void and of no 
effect ; and any person acting as attorney to receive and receipt for 
money for aud in behalf of any person entitled to a pension shall, before 
receiving said money, take and subscribe an oath, to be filed with the 
pension agent, and by him to be transmitted, with the vouchers now 
required by law, to .the proper accounting officer of the treasury, that 
he has no interest in said money by any pledge, mortgage, sale, assign 
ment, or transfer, and that he does not know or believe that the same 
has been so disposed of to any person ; and any person who shall falsely 
take the said oath shall be guilty of perjmy, and, on conviction, shall be 
liable to the pains and penalties of perjury. 

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That any person who shall present 
or cause to be presented at any pension agency any poAver-of-attorney, 
or other paper required as a voucher in drawing a pension, which paper 
shall bear a date subsequent to that on which it was actually signed or 
executed, such person so offending shall be deemed guilty of a high mis- 
demeanor, and shall, on conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not 
exceeding five hundred dollars, or by imprisonment for a term not 
exceeding three years, or by both, at the discretion of the court before 
whom such conviction shall be had ; and no sum of money due, or to 
become due, to any iiensioner under the laws aforesaid, shall be liable 
to attachment, levy, or seizure by or under any legal or equitable process 
whatever, whether the same remains with the Pension Offlce, or any 
oflicer or agent thereof, or is in course of ti'ansmission to the pensioner 
entitled thereto, but shall inure wholly to the benefit of such pensioner. 

Sec. 4. And he it further enacted, That no claim agent or other jierson 
shall hereafter charge or receive more than twenty-five cents for prepar- 
ing the papers necessary to enable a pensioner to receive a semi-annual 
payment of his pension, nor shall any pension agent charge or receive 
more than fifteen cents for administering an oath to a iiensioner, or his 
attorney-in-fact, under a penalty of five dollars in eaeh case. 



24 

Sec. 5. And he it further enacted, That section one of an act entitled 
" An act supplementary to tlie several acts relating to pensions," apiiroved 
March three, eighteen hiindi'ed and sixty-five, is hereby reijealed. 

Sec. 6. And he it furtJisr enaMed, That if any person entitled to an 
invalid pension has died since March four, eighteen hundred and sixty- 
one, or shall hereafter die while an api^lication for such pension is pend- 
ing, and after the proof has been complet'Cd, lea^^ng no widow and no 
minor child imder sixteen years of age, his heirs or legal representatives 
shall be entitled to receive the accrued pension to which the applicant 
would have been entitled had the certificate been issued before his death. 

Sec. 7. And he it further enacted, That in all cases when a commission 
shall have been regularly issued to any person in the military or naval 
service who shall have died or been disabled while in the line of duty, 
after the date of such commission, and before being mustered, such offi- 
cer or other person entitled to a pension for such death or disability by 
existing laws, shall receive a pension corresponding to his rank, a« 
determined by such commission, the same a-s if he had been mustered : 
Provided, That this section shall not apply to any officer who shall have 
wilfully neglected or reftised to be so must«red. 

Seo. 8. And he it furtlier en-acted, That officers absent on sick leave, 
and enlisted men absent on sick furlough, shall be regarded in the 
administration of the pension laws in the same manner a^s if they were 
in the field or hospital. 

Seo. 9. And he itfiirther enacted, That the period of service of all i)er- 
sons entitled to the benefits of the pension laws, or on account of whose 
death any person may become entitled to a pension, shall be construed 
to extend to the time of disbanding the organization to which such per- 
sons belonged, or untU their actual discharge for other cause than the 
expiration of the service of such organization. 

Sec. 10. And he it further enacted. That enlisted men employed as 
teamsters, wagoners, artificers, hospital stewards, farriers, sadlers, and 
all other enlisted men, however emploj-ed in the service of the army or 
naA'^y, not specifically mentioned in the first section of an act entitled 
"An act to grant pensions, approved July foiirteen, eighteen hundred 
and sixty-two," shall be regarded, in the administration of the pension 
laws, as non-commissioned officers or privates. 

Sec. 11. And he it further enacted, That if any officer, soldier, or sea- 
man, shall have died of wounds received or of disease contracted in the 
line of duty in the military or naval service of the United States, leaving 
a widow and a child or children under the age of sixteen years, and it 
shall be duly certified under seal, by any court having probate jurisdic- 
tion, that satisfactory evidence has been produced before such court 
that the ^^4dow aforesaid has abandoned the care of such child or chil- 
dren, or is an unsuitable person, by reason of immoral conduct, to have 
the custody of the same, then no pension shall be allowed to such widow 
until said minor child or children shall have become sixteen years of 
age, any previous enactment to the contrary notwithstanding, and the 
minor child or children aforesaid shall be pensioned in the same manner 
as if no widow had survived the said officer, soldier, or seaman, and 
such pension may be paid to the regadarly authorized giiardian of such , 
minor or minors. 

Sec. 12. And he it furtlier enacted, That section four of an act entitled 
"An act to gxant pensions," approved Jidy fourteen, eighteen hundred 
and sixty-two, is hereby so amended that the provisions thereof shall 
apply to and include the orijhan brother or brothers, as well as sister or 
sisters, imder sixteen years of age, and the father as well as mother of a 



25 

deceased officer or other person named in section one of the above-enti- 
tled act,' who -were dependent npon him for support in whole or in part, 
subject to the same limitations and restrictions. 

Sec. 13. And be it further emoted, That nothing in this or any other 
act shall be so construed as to repeal or modify the sixth section of an 
act entitled "An act supplementary to 'An act to grant pensions,' 
approved July fourteenth, eighteen hundred and sixty-two," approved 
July fourth, eighteen hundred and sixty-four, or to entitle a person to 
receive more than one pension at the same tune ; and in every case in 
which a claim for pension shaU not have been tiled within three years 
after the discharge or decease of the party on whose account the claim 
is made, the pension, if allowed, shall commence from the date of filing 
the last paper in said case by the party prosecuting the same. 

Sec. 14. And be it further enacted, That the fourteenth section of an 
a«t entitled "An act sxipplementary to an act entitled 'An act to grant 
pensions,' approved July fourteenth, eighteen hundred and sixty-two," 
approved Jidy fourth, eighteen hundred and sixty -four, be, and the same 
is hereby, repealed ; and that the widows and childi-en of colored soldiers 
and sailors who have beeu or may be hereafter killed, or who have died 
or may hereafter die of wounds received or of disease contracted in the 
military or naval service of the United States, and in the line of duty, 
shall be entitled to receive the pensions, bounty, and back pay provided 
bj law, -without other evidence of marriage than proof satisfactory to 
the Commissioner of Pensions that the parties had habitually recognized 
each otlier as man and wife and lived together as such; and the chil- 
dren born of any marriage so proved shall be deemed and taken to be 
the children of the soldier or sailor party thereto. 

Aiiproved, Jiine 6, 1866. 



ACT OF JULY 25, ]856. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and Souse of Bepresentatives of the United 
iStates of America in Congress assembled. That the provisions of the pen- 
sion laws are hereby extended to and made to include provost marshals, 
deputy provost marshals, and enroUiug officers, who have been killed or 
wounded in the discharge of their duties ; and for the purpose of deter- 
minining the amount of pension to which stich persons and their depend- 
ents shaU be entitled, provost marshals shall be ranked as captains, 
deputy provost marshals as first lieutenants, and enrolling officers as 
second lieutenants. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That the pensions to widows of 
deceased soldiers and sailors having children by such deceased soldiers 
or sailors, be increased at the rate of two dollars per month for each 
child of such soldier or sailor under the age of sixteen years. And in 
all cases in which there shall be more than one child of any deceased 
soldier or sailor leaving no mdow, or where his widow has died or mar- 
ried again, or where she has been deprived of her pension under the 
provisions of section eleven of an act entitled "An act supplementary 
to the several acts relating to pensions," approved June sixth, eighteen 
hundred and sixty-six, the pension granted to such children under six- 
teen years of age by existing laws shall be increased to the same amount 
per month that -would be allowed under the foregoing provisions to the 
widow if living and entitled to a pension : Provided, That in no case 
shall more than one pension be allowed to the same person. 



26 

Sec. 3. And be itfurtlier enacted^ That the provisions of an act enti- 
tled "An act to grant pensions," approved July foiirteentli, eighteen 
hundred and sixty-two, and of the acts supplementary thereto and 
amendatory thereof, are hereby, so far as applicable, extended to the 
pensioners under previous laws, except revohitionary pensioners. 

Sec. 4. And he it further enacted, That if any person during the pen- 
dency of his application for an invalid pension, and after the completion 
of the proof showing his right thereto, has died, or shall hereafter die, 
but not in either case by reason of a wound received or disease contracted 
in the service of the United States and in the line of duty, his widow, 
or if he left no -widow, or in the event of her death or marriage, his rela- 
tives in the same order in Avhich they would have received a pension if 
they had been thereunto entitled under existing laws on accoimt of the 
services and death in the line of dutj^ of such i^erson, shall have the 
right to demand and receive the accrued pension to which he would 
have been entitled had the certificate issued before his death ; and in 
all cases where such person so entitled to an invalid pension has died, 
or shall hereafter die, under circumstances hereinbefore mentioned, 
whether by reason of a wound received or disease contracted in the ser- 
vice of the United States and in the line of duty, or otherwise, without 
leaving a widow or such relatives, then such accrued pension shall be 
paid to the executor or adniinistrator of such person in like manner and 
effect as if such pension were so much assets belonging to the estate of 
the deceased at the time of his death. 

Sec. 5. And he it further enacted, That the repeal by the act entitled 
"An act supplementary to the several acts relating to pensions," approved 
June sixth, eighteen hundred and sixty-six, of parts of certain acts men- 
tioned in the first section of said act, shall not work a forfeiture of any 
rights accrued under or granted by such parts of such acts so repealed ; 
but such rights shall be recognized and allowed in the same mamier and 
to all intents and purposes as if said act had never passed, except that 
the invalid pensioner shall be entitled to draw, from and after the 
taking effect of said act, the increased pension thereby granted in lieii 
of that granted by such parts of such acts so repealed. 

Sec. 6. And he it further enacted, That nothing in the fourth section 
of an act entitled "An act supplementary to the several acts relating to 
pensions," approved March third, eighteen hundred and sixty-five, or in 
any other supplementary or amendatory act relating to pensions, shall 
be so construed as to impair the right of a widow, whose claim for a 
pension was pending at the date of her remarriage, to the pension to 
which she would otherwise be entitled had her deceased husband left 
no minor child or children tmder the age of sixteen years. 

Approved, July 25, 1866. 



ACT OF JULY 27, 1868. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and Mouse of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled. That the laws gxanting pensions 
to the hereinafter-mentioned dependent relatives of deceased persons 
leaving neither widow nor chUd entitled to pensions imder existing laws, 
shall be so construed as to give precedence to such relatives in the fol- 
lowing order, namely: First, mothers ; secondly, fathers; thirdly, orphan 
brothers and sisters xmder sixteen years of age, who shall be pensioned 
iointly if there be more than one : Provided, That if, in any case, the said 



27 

persons shall have left both father and mother who were dependent upon 
them, then on the death of the mother the father shall become entitled 
to a i^ensiou commencing from -and after the death of the mother ; and 
upon the death of the mother and father the dependent brothers and sis- 
ters under sixteen years of age shall jointly become entitled to such pen- 
sion until they attain the age of sixteen years, respectively, commencing' 
from and after the death of the party who, iireceding them, would have 
been entitled to the same: And provided furfher, That no pension here- 
tofore awarded shall be affected by anything herein contained. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That no person shall be entitled to a 
pension by reason of wounds received, or disease contracted, in the ser- 
vice of the United States, subsequently to the passage of this act, iinless 
the person who was woimded or contracted disease was in the line of 
duty ; and, if in the military service, was at the time actually in the field, 
or on the march, or at some post, fort, or garrison; or if in the naval 
service was at the time borne on the books of some ship, or other vessel 
of the United States, at sea or in harbor, actually in commission, or was 
on his way, by direction of com^Detent authority, to the United States, 
or to some other vessel or naval station. 

Sec. 3. And be if further enacted, That so much of the acts approved 
April sixth, eighteen hundred and thirty-eight, and August twenty-third, 
eighteen hundred and forty-two, as requii-es that pensions remaining- 
unclaimed for fourteen months after the same have become due shall 
be adjusted at the office of the Third Auditor, is hereby repealed ; and 
the failure of any pensioner to claim his or her pension for a period 
of three years after the same shall have become due, shall be deemed 
presumptive evidence that such pension has legally terminated by reason 
of the pensioner's death, remarriage, recovery from disability, or other- 
vrise, and the pensioner's name shall be stricken from the roUs, subject to 
the right of restoration to the same on a new application, with evidence 
satisfactorily accoimting for the failure to claim such pension. 

Sec. i. And be it further enacted, That if any officer, soldier, seaman, 
or enlisted man has died since the foiixth day of March, eighteen hun- 
dred and sixty-one, or shall hereafter die, leaving a widow entitled to a 
pension, and a child or children under sixteen years of age by a former 
wife, each of said children shall be entitled to receive two dollars per 
month, to commence from the death of their father and continue until 
they severally attain the age of sixteen years, to be paid to the guardian 
of such child or children for their use and benefit : Provided, however,- 
That in all cases where such widow is charged with the care, custody, 
and maintenance of such child or children, the said sum of two dollars 
per month for each of said children shall be paid to her for and during 
the time she is, or may have been, so charged with the care, custody, and 
maintenance of such child or children, subject to the same conditions, 
provisions, and limitations as if they were her own children by her said 
deceased husband. 

Sec. 5. And be it further enactM, That in all cases where an increased 
pension has been or may hereafter be granted to any widow or guardian 
of the children imder sixteen years of age of a deceased soldier or saUor 
under an act entitled "An act increasing the pensions of widows, and 
for other purposes," approved July twenty-fifth, eighteen hundi-ed and 
sixty-sis, or any subsequent act, such widow, or the guardian of such 
children, shall not be dej)rived of siich increase by reason of any child or 
chUdreu of such deceased soldier or saUor being the inmate of any home, 
orphan's asyliun, or other public or private charitable institution organ- 
ized for the care and education of soldiers' orphans under the laws of 



28 

any of the States, or in any school or institution where such orphan may 
in Aviiole or in i^art be maintained or educated at the expense of a State, 
or of the public. 

Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That all pensions which have been 
granted in consequence of death occurring or disease contracted, or 
wounds received, since the fourth day of March, eighteen hundred arid 
sixty-one, or may hereafter be granted, shall commence from the dis- 
charge or from the death of the i^erson on whose account the pension has 
been or shall hereafter be granted : Provided, That the apiilication for 
such pension has been, or shall her,eafter be, filed with the Commissioner 
of Pensions within five years after the right thereto shall have accrued; 
except that applications by or in behalf of insane persons and children 
under sixteen years of age may be filed after the expiration of the said 
five years, if previously thereto they were without giiardiaus or other 
proper legal representatives. 

Sec. 7. And he it furtJier enacted, That immediately upon the passage 
of this act, or as soon thereafter as may be practicable, it shall be the 
duty of the Commissioner of Pensions to give public notice of the con- 
tents of the foregoing section, particularly at the offices of the several 
pension agencies; and upon any apijlication by letter or otherwise for 
or on behalf of any person entitled to the benefit of its provisions, or 
upon any notification that such person is so entitled, to pay or cause to 
be' paid to him all such arrears of pensions as he may be entitled to under 
the provisions of said section; and no claim agent or other person shall 
be entitled to receive any compensation for services in making applica- 
tion for the arrears of pension tmder this and the preceding section. 

Sec. 8. And he it further enacted, That section eleven of an act entitled 
"An act supplementary to the several acts relating to pensions," 
approved June six, eighteen hundred and sixty-six, be amended and 
re-enacted so as to read as follows: "That if any officer, soldier, or sea- 
man shall have died of wounds received or of disease contracted in the 
line of duty in the military or naval service of the United States, leaving 
a widow and a child or children imd-er the age of sixteen years, and it 
shall be duly certified under seal, by any court having probate jurisdic- 
tion, that satisfactory evidence has been produced before such court that 
the widow aforesaid' has abandoned the care of such child or children, 
or is an unsuitable person, by reason of immoral conduct, to have the 
custody of the same, or on presentation of satisfactory evidence thereof 
to the Commissioner of Pensions, then no pension shall be allowed to 
such widow until said cliUd or children shall have severally become six- 
teen years of age, any previous enactment to the contrary notwithstand- 
ing; and the child or children aforesaid shall be pensioned in the same 
manner as if no widow had survived the said officer, soldier, or seaman, 
and sirch pension may be paid to the regularly authorized guardian of 
such child or children." 

Sec. 9. And he it further enacted, That section six of an act entitled 
"An act supplementary to the several acts relating to pensions," approved 
June six, eighteen hundred and sixty-six, be, and the same is hereby, 
amended and re-enacted, so as to read as follows: That if any person 
entitled to a pension has died since March fourth, eighteen hundred and 
sixty-one, or shall hereafter die while an application for such pension is 
pending, leaving no widow and no child under sixteen years of age, his 
or her heirs or legal representatives shall be entitled to receive the 
accrued pension to which the applicant woiild have been entitled had the 
certificate been issued before his or her death. 

Sec. 10. And he it furtlier enacted, That the remarriage of any widow 
or dependent mother, otherwise entitled to a pension prior to the appli- 



29 

cation therefor, or to the issiie of a pension certificate to her, shall Jiot 
debar her right to a pension for the period elapsing from the death of her 
husband or son, on account of whose services and death she may claim 
a pension, to her remamage: Provided, ho^cever, That nothing in this 
section shall be construed to rej)eal or modify the foui-th section of an act 
entitled "An act supplementary to the several acts gTanting pensions," 
approved March thii-d, eighteen hrmtlred and sixty-live. 

Sec. 11. And be it further enacted, That the provisions of the ninth 
section of an act approved Jidy fourth, eighteen himdi-ed and sixty-four, 
entitled "An act supplementary to 'An act to grant pensions,' " are hereby 
continued in force for live years from the fourth day of Jidy, eighteen 
hundred and sixty-seven. 

Sec. 12. And be itfurtJisr enacted, That section one of an act entitled 
"An act supi)lementary to the several acts relating to pensions," approved 
June six, eighteen hundred and sixty-six, shall be so construed as to 
secure to every person entitled by law before the passage of said act to a 
less pension than twenty-five dollars per month, who, wlule in the military 
or naval service, and in the line of duty, or in consequence of wounds 
received or disease contracted therein, having only one eye, shall have 
lost the same, a pension of twenty-five dollars per month. 

Sec. 13. And be it further enacted. That the third section of an act 
entitled "An act increasing the pensions of widows and orphans, and for 
other purposes," approved Jidy twenty-fifth, eighteen hrmdred and sisty- 
six, shall be so construed as to place all pensioners whose right thereto 
accrued subsequently to the war of the Eevolution, and prior to the fourth 
day of March, eighteen hundred and sixty-one,'on the same footing, as 
to rate of pension, from and after the passage of said act, as those who 
have been pensioned rmder acts passed since said fourth day of March, 
eighteen hundred and sixty-one ; and the widows of revolutionary soldiers 
and sailors now receiving a less sum shall hereafter be paid at the rate of 
eight doUars per month. 

Sec. 14. Atid be it further enacted. That all officers ta the military or 
naval ser\'ice, of the rank of captain in the army or lieutenant in the navy, 
and of less rank, who have lost a leg or arm in such service and in the 
line of duty, or in consequence of woimds received or disease contracted 
therein, shaU be entitled to receive an artificial limb on the same terms 
as privates in the army are now entitled to receive the same. 

Sec. 15. And be it further enacted. That in all cases pensions heretofore 
or hereafter granted by special acts of Congress shall be subject to be 
varied in amount according to the provisions and Umitations of the 
pension laws. 

Sec. 16. And be it further enacted, That all acts and parts of acts incon- 
sistent with the foregoing pro-^^ions of tliis act be, and the same are 
hereby, repealed. 

Approved, Jidy 27, 1868. 



FOEMS. 
A. 

declaration for an invalid pension. 

State [District ok Territory] of , ) 

County of , j**- 

On this day of , A. D. one thousand eight hundred 

and , personally appeared before me, , [here state the official 



30 

eJuiracter of thejyerson administering the oath,\ witliin and for the county 

and State aforesaid, A. B., aged years, a resident of , in the 

State of , who, being duly sworn according to law, declares that he 

is the identical who enlisted in the service of the United States 

at , on the day of , in the year , as a in 

company , commanded by , ia the regiment of , 

in the war of 1861, and was honorably discharged on the day 

of , in the year ; that while in the service aforesaid, and in 

the line of his duty, he received the following wound, [or other disability, 
cis the case may he :] [Here give a particular and minute account of tlie 
wound or other injury, and state how, wlwn, and where it occurred, where 
the applicant has resided since leaving the service, and wliat lias ieen his 
occupation.] 

My post office address is as follows : . 

(Signature of claimant.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of 

[county, city, or totcn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and 
entitled to credit, and who, being by me duly sworn, say that they were 
present and saw sign his name [or malce his marTc] to the fore- 
going declaration; and they fiirther swear that they have every reason 
to believe, from the appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance 
with him, that he is the identical person he represents himself to be ; and 
they further swear that they have no iuterest in the prosecution of this 
claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

186- ; and I hereby certify that I have no iuterest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 



DECLARATION FOR OBTAINING A WIDOWS ARMY PENSION. 

State [Teekitokt oe District] op , ) „. 

County of , }**• 

On this day of , A. D. , personally appeared before 

me, , of the , A. B., a resident of , in the couniy of 

, and State [Territory or District] of , aged years, who 

being first duly sworn according to law, doth on her oath make the fol- 
lowing declaration iu order to obtain the benefit of the provisions made 
by the act of Congress approved July 14, 1862 : That she is the widow 

of , who was a tri company , commanded by , 

in the regiment of in the war of 1861, who [liere specify tlie 

time, place, and cause of death.] She further declares that she was mar- 
ried to the said on the day of iu the year ; 

that her husband, the aforesaid , died on the day above mentioned, 

and that she has remained a widow ever since that period, as will more 
fully appear by reference to the proof hereto annexed. She also declares 
that she has not in any manner been engaged iu, or aided or abetted, the 
rebellion in the United States. 

My post office address is as follows : 



(Declarant's signature., 



31 

Also persoually appeared and , residents of [cotmty, city, 

or totcn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, 
and who, being by mo duly sworn, say that they were present and saw 

sign her name [or maJce her marlc] to the foregoing declaration ; 

and they further swear that they have every reason to believe, from the 
appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance with her, that she is 
the identical person she represents herself to be, and that they have no 
interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

1S6- ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, dii-ect or indii-ect, in 
ijke prosecution of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 



State [Tbrkitoet or Distkict] of , ) 

County of , | ' 

On this day of , A. D, , personally appeared before 

the of the , A. B., a resident of , in the county of 

, and State [Territory or District] of , aged years, 

who being first duly sworn according to law, doth on oath make the fol- 
lowing declaration, as guardian of the minor child of , deceased, 

in order to obtain the benefits of the provisions made by the act of Oon- 
gT6SS approved July 14, 1862, granting pensions to minor children, under 
sixteen years of age, of deceased officers and soldiers ; that he is the 

guardian of , [namin{i the minor child or children, his ivard or 

wards,] whose father was a in company , commanded by 

, in the regiment of , in the war of 1861, and that 

the said died at on the day of , in the year 

, \liere state the cause of death;] that the mother of the child 

aforesaid died (or again married, being now the wife of ) 

on the day of , in the year ; and that the date of 

birth of his said ward as follows : 

He further declares that the parents of his said ward were 

married at , on the day of , in the year , bj 

My post office address is as follows : - 



(Guardian's signature.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of [county, city, 

or town,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, 
and who, being by me didy sworn, say that they were present and saw 

sign name [or malce her mar J;] to the foregoing declaration; 

and they further swear that they have every reason to beUeve, from the 
appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance with her, that she 
is the identical person she represents herself to be, and that they have 
no interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D 

186 — , and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 



32 



DECLAEA.TION FOR MOTHER'S OK FATHER'S APPLICATION FOE ARMY 

PENSION. 



ss: 



State [Territoet or District] of — 
County of , 

On this day of , A. D. , personally appearedbefore 

the of the , A. B., a resident of , in the county of 

, and State [Territory or District] of , aged years, 

who, being first duly sworn according to law, doth on oath make 

the following declaration in order to obtain the benefits of the provisions 
made by the act of Congxess approved July 14, 1862, and its amend- 
ments : That is the of , and of j, who 

was a in company , commanded by , in the 

regiment of , in the war of 1861, who \here state the time, 

place, and cause of death.] 

further declares that said son, upon whom was 

wholly or in part dependent for supjjort, having left no widow or minor 
child under sixteen years of age surviving, declarant makes this applica- 
tion for a pension imder the above-mentioned act, and refers to the evi- 
dence filecl herewith, and that in the proper department, to establish 
claim. 

also declares that has not in any way been engaged in, 

or aided or abetted, the rebellion in the United States ; that is 

not in the receipt of a pension under the 2d section of the act above 

mentioned, or under any other act, nor has again married since 

the death of son, the said . 

My post office address is as follows : . 

(Declarant's signature.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of [county, city, 

or town,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, 

and who, being by me duly sworn, say they were present and saw 

sign name [or malce marh] to the foregoing declaration ; 

and they further swear that they have every reason to believe, from 

the appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance with ■, 

that is the identical person represents to be, and 

that they have no interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indixect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatiu-e of judge or other officer.) 



E. 

declaration of orphan brothers or sisters for aemy pension. 

State [Teeeitobt or District] of , ) 

County of , }**•' 

On this day of , A. D. , personally appeared before 

the of the , A. B., a resident of in the county of 

, and State [Territory or District] of •, aged years, 

who, being first didy sworn according to law, doth on oath make the 



33 

following declaration, in order to obtain a pension nnder the act of July 
14, 1862, and its amendments : That he is the legally appointed guardian 

of [here give the names and ages of Ms tcard or icaj-ds,] who the 

only siu'viving child , under sixtfeen years of age, of and 

his wife, and of , who was a in company 

, commanded by , iu the regiment of , ia the 

war of 1861, who [here state the time, place, and cause of his death.] 

That the brother of his said ward , upon Avhom they are wholly or in 

part dependent for support, having left no widow, minor chUd or chil- 
dren, declarant as giiardian, and on behalf of his Avard , refers to 

the accompanying evidence, and such as may be found in the department, 
to establish claim imder the law above named. 

He further declares that his said ward is not in receipt of any 

pension luider said act. 

My post offtce address is as follows : . 

(Guardian's signature.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of [county, city, 

or toicn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, 
and who, beiag by me duly sworn, say that they were present and saw 
sign name [or malce marlc] to the foregoing decla- 
ration ; and they further swear that they have every reason to believe, 

from the appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance with , 

that is the identical person represents to be, and 

that they have no interest in the proseciition of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 



DECLARATION FOE THE INCREASE OF AN INVALID PENSION. 
(Under thejirst section of the sztpplementary pension act of June G, 1866.) 

State [Teeeitoet oe Disteict] op , ) „„ 

County of , \ '' ' 

On this '■ day of , A. D. 18 — , personally appeared before 

me, [describing the official character of the person administering tlie oath,] 

A. B., aged ' years, a resident of , [naming the town and 

post office address,] in the county of , and State [Territory or 

District] of , who, being diily sworn according to law, declares that 

he is a pensioner of the IJnited States, duly enrolled at the pen- 
sion agency, at the rate of $ per month, by reason of disability incnrred 

in the military [or naval] service of the United States, [here state the 
company and regiment, if in the army, or the vessel and ranlc, if in the 
navy,] and that Ms present physical condition is such that he believes 

himself entitled to receive an increased pension of the [fif'^t, second 

or third] grade provided for in the first section of the supplementary 
pension act approved June 6, 1866. He fm?ther declares that he is dis- 
abled in the following manner, to wit : [Sere the declarant will particu- 
larly set forth the nature of his disahility, and the extent to ichich he is 
incapacitated for manual labor, or dependent upon the personal aid. and 
attendance of others ] 

(Signature of declarant.) 
3 I 



34 

Also personally appeared before me, at the time and place aforesaid, 
C. D., of , and E. F., of , whom I certify to he credible per- 
sons, Avho, being duly sworn according to law, declare, each for himself, 
that they weU know A. B., who signed the foregoing declaration in theii- 
presence, and that he is the identical person he represents himself to be, 
and that he is disabled substantially in the manner alleged in said dec- 
laration. They further swear that they, or either of them, have no inter- 
est in this claim, either present or prospective, and that they are not 
concerned, directly or indirectly, in its prosecution. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

IS — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(SigTiatiu-e of judge or other officer.) 



DECLARATION OF THE GUARDIAN OF A MINOR CHILD. 
(Under the eleventh section of the act of June 6, 1866. J 

State [Terkitoiiy or District] of , ) 

County of , ]^^' 

On this day of , A. D. , personally appeared before 

me, , \describing the official character of the person administering 

the oath,] A. B., aged years, a resident of , [naming town 

and post office address,] in the coimty of , and State [Territory or 

District] of , who, being duly sworn according to law, cloth on oath 

make the following declaration, as guardian of the minor child [or chil- 
dren] of , deceased, in order to obtain the benefits of the provision 

made by the eleventh section of the act of CongTess, approved Jime 6, 
1866, and its amendments, granting pensions to minor children under 
sixteen years of age, of deceased ofificers, soldiers, or seamen, who have 
left a widow stni surviving, the latter having abandoned the care of said 
children, or having been declared an unsuitable person to have charge 

of them. He further declares that he is the guardian of , [naming 

the minor child or children, his ward or tcards,] whose father was , 

[here describe the service of the deceased,] in the war of 1861, and that 

the said died at , on the day of , in the year 

, \liere state the cause of death,] that the mother of the child [or 

children] aforesaid has abandoned the care, or is an unsuitable person, by 
reason of immoral conduct, [here state ichat specific conduct is referred 
to,] to have charge of the child [or children ;] and that the date of birth 
of his said ward [or wards] is as follows: 

He [or she] further declares that the parents of his [or her] said ward 

[or wards] were married at , on the — day of , in the 

year , by . 

(Guardian's signatiu'e.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of ^, 

[county, city, or tmcn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable an 
entitled to credit, and who, being by me duly sw.orn, say that they were 
present and saw sign name [or malce marlc] to the forego- 
ing declaration ; and they further swear that they have every reason to 
believe, from the appearance of the applicant, and their acquaintance 



35 

with , that is the identical person repx'esents 

to be, and that they have no interest in the prosecution of tlie claim. 

(Signatiu'e of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before nie this day of , A. D. 

18 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 



WIDOW'S DECLARATION FOR AN INCREASE OF PENSION. 
{Vndtr the secund section nf the act of July 25, 1866.) 

State [Teeeitory ok District] op , ) 

Count!/ of , r*-' 

On this day , A. D. , personally appeared before 

me, , of tlie , A. B., a resident of , in the county of 

, and State [Territory or District] of , aged years, 

who, being first duly sworn according to law, doth on her oath make the 
following declaration, in order to obtain the benefit of the pro\asion made 
by the second section of the act of Congress increasing the pensions of 
widows and orphans, approved July 25, 1866 : That she is the widow of 

, who was a in company , commanded by , in 

the regiment of , in the war of 1861 ; and that by reason of 

his death in the service aforesaid, she has been gTanted a pension of 

eight dollars per month, in accordance with a certificate numbered , 

bearing date . She fiu'ther swears that she has the following 

named children of her deceased husband under sixteen years of age, who 
are now living, the dates of whose birth were as given below, to wit: 



She fiu-ther declares that she has not reman-ied since the death of her 
said husband, nor has she abandoned the supj)ort of any one of the chil- 
dren above named, nor permitted any one of the same to be adopted by 
any other person or persons as his, her, or their child. 

My post office address is as follows: . 

(Declarant's signature.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of [county, city, 

or toicn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit; 
and who, being by me duly sworn, say that they were present and saw 

sign her name [or malce Iter marJc] to the foregoing declaration; 

and they fiuther swear that they have every reason to believe, from the 
appearance of the appbcaut, and their acquaintance with her, that she 
is the identical person she represents herself to be, and that they have 
no interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Siguatiu'es of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me, this ■ day of , A. D. 

180 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the jirosecntion of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 



GUARDIAN'S DECLARATION FOR INCREASE OF PENSION. 
( Utuhr the second section of the act of July 25, ] 866. ) 

State [Teeritoet oe Disteict] of , ) „„ 

^ County of , ^ 1''^ 

On tills day of , A. D. , per.sonally appeared before 

me, , of the , A. B., a resident of , and State [Terri- 
tory or District] of , aged years, Tfho, being dirly sworn 

according to law, doth on oath make the following declaration, in 

order to obtain the benefit of the pro\'ision made by the second section 
of the act of Congress increasing the pensions of widows and orjihans, 
approved July 25, 1866 : That [he or she] is the guardian of [naming the 

minor child or children, -ward or icards,] whose father was a in 

company , commanded by , in the regiment of , 

in the war of 1861, and that the said [naming thefatlier] died at 

on the day of , in the year , [here state the cause of 

death;] that the mother of the child aforesaid died (or again mar- 
ried, being now the wife of ,) on the day of , in the 

year ; and that the dates of birth of the said [minor child or chil- 
dren, ward or wards,] were as follows, to wit: 

[He or she] fm^ther declares that the parents of the said [miuor child 

or childen, ward or wards,] were married at , on the day of 

, in the year , by , and that the maiden name of their 

mother was . 

My post office address is as follows : . 

(Guardian's signatiu'e.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of [county, city, 

or toivn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, 
and who, being by me duly sworn, say that they were present and saw 

sign her name [or malce her mark] to the foregoing declaration;. 

and they further swear that they have every reason to believe, from the 
appearance of the applicant, and their acquaintance with her, that she is 
the identical person she represents herself to be, and that they have no 
interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatiu'es of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me, this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatiu'e of judge or other officer.) 



K. 

DECLARATION FOR WIDOW'S PENSION AND INCREASE. 
(Under the act of July 14, 1862, and supplementary act of July 25, 1866.) 

State of , County of , ss: 

On this day of , A. D. , i^ersonallj' appeared before 

me, a of a coiu-t of record in and for the county and State afore- 
said, a resident of , in the coimty of , and State of 



37 

, aged years, wlio, being duly sworn, makes the following' 

declaration, iu order to obtain the pension pro%aded by the act of Con- 
gress, approved Jnly 14, 1862 : That she is the widow of , who was 

a in company , commanded by , in the regi- 
ment of , in the war of 1861; that her maiden name was , 

and that she was married to said on or about the day of 

, A. D. , at , in the county of , and State of 

, by , and that there is record evidence of marriage. 

She fiu'ther declares that said ^--, her husband, died in the ser- 

^'ice of the United States, as aforesaid, at , in the State of , 

on or about the day of , A. D. , of . 

She also declares that she has remaiued a widow ever siuce the death 

of said ■ — , and that she has the following-named children of her 

deceased husband, under sixteen years of age, who are now lining, the 
dates of whose births are, as given below, to wit : 

She fiu'ther declares that she has not abandoned the support of any 
one of the children above named, nor permitted any one of the same to 
be adopted by any person or persons ; that they are the only legitimate 
children of herself and the deceased, and that she has not iu any manner 
been engaged in or aided or abetted the rebellion in the United States. 

My post office address is . 

(Signatiu-e of claimant.) 

Also personally appeared , and , residents of , 

coimty and State of , to me well known as credible persons, who, 

being dvly SAVorn, declare that they were present and saw said 

sign her name to the foregoing declaration, and that they have every 
reason to believe, from the appearance of said applicant, and their 
acquaintance with her, that she is the identical person she represents 
herself to be, and know that said deceased recognized the said applicant 
as his lawful wife, and that she was so recognized in the community iu 
which they resided ; and they further declare that they know the fact 
that she has not remarried, but is stUl a vridow, and that she has not 
abandoned the support of any one of the said children, and that her 
statement iu reference to the same is true to their personal knowledge, 
and that they have no interest, direct, or indirect in the prosecution of 
this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of — , A. D. 

; and I hereby certify that the contents of the above were made 

known and explained to the applicant and witnesses before signing, and 
that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in the i^rosecution of this claim. 

[SEAL.] (Official signature.) 



L. 

DECLARATION FOE EESTOEATION TO THE EOLLS. 
iUnder section 3, act July 27, 1868.) 

State [Tereitoe,y oe Disteict] of , ) ^^ 

County of , T^-' 

On this day of , A. D. one thousand eight hundi-ed and 

, personally appeared before me, , \liere state the official char- 



38 

acter of the person administering the oath^] Avitliin and for the 

county and State aforesaid, A. B., aged years, a resident of , 

in tlie Stat« of , who being dnly sworn according to law declares 

that is the identical to whom was granted pension certifi- 
cate No. — — , payable at , dated the day of , in the 

year ; that having failed since the day of , 18 — , by 

reason of [here state the causes of such neglect] , to apply 

for the payiaent due upon said certificate, and thereby been deprived of 

the same under the third section of the act of Jidy 27, 1868, makes 

this declaration in order to secure restoration to the pension rolls 

and a new certificate, retm-ning herewith the origiaal. 

post office address is as foUows : , . 

(Signature of claimant.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of , 

[county, city, or toicn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and 
entitled to credit, and who, beiag by me didy sworn, say that they were 

present and saw sign name [or mahe his or lier marli\ to the 

foregoiug declaration; and they fiu'ther swear that they have every 
reason to believe, from the appearance of the applicant and their acquaiat- 

ance with , that — — is the identical person represents 

self to be; and they further swear that they have no interest in the pros- 
ecution of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in 
the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatm-e of judge or other officer.) 

Note.— In cases of invalid pensioners a certificate of a pension siu'- 
geon will be required that the disability still continues, except in cases 
of loss of limbs and of the eyes. 

W■ido^os and mothers should depose as to continuance of widoiohood. 



DECLARATION FOR ARREARS OF PENSIONS. 
( Under sections 6 and 10, act of July 27, 1868.) 

State [Teeeitoet ok Disteict] of , ) ^^ 

County of , /**•' 

On this day of , A. D. one thousand eight hundred and 

, personally appeared before me [here state the official 

cMracter of the person administering the oath,] withm and for the county 

and State aforesaid, A. B., aged years, a resident of , ta the 

Staift of , who, being duly sworn according to law, declares that 

is the identical to Avhom was granted pension certificate No. — , 

payable at the agency at and dated ; that under the limi- 
tations of the act of was denied a pension from the date of the 

(remarriage) death or discharge of ; and believing entitled 

to the same, under the section of the act of July 27, 186S, • 

this declaration in order to secure the arrears accrued thereunder. 

— post office address is as follows : . 

(Signatiu-e of claimant.) 



39 

Also personally appeared and , residents of (county, city, 

or to-ftTi,) persons wliom I certify to bo res]icctab]o and entitled to credit, 
and who, being by me dxdy sworn, say tliat they wore present and saw 
sign name [or make marl:] to the foregoing declara- 
tion ; and they further swear that they have every reason to believe, 

from the appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance with , 

that is the identical person represents self to be ; and they 

further state that they have no interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, 
in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatiu'e of judge or other officer.) 

Invalid applicants under section 6 should depose as to length of time 
they were employed in the ci\al service of the government between 
March 3, 1865, and June 6, 1866. 



DECLARATION FOE INCEEASE OF PENSION. 
{Under section 13, act of July 27, 1868.) 

State [Teekitory or Distkict] of , ) 

County of , T^' 

On this day of , A. D. one thousand eight himdred and 

, ijersonally appeared before me [here state the official 

character of the person administering the oath,] within and for 

the county and State aforesaid, A. B., aged years, a resident of 

, in the State of , who, being duly sworn according to law, 

declares that is the identical to whom was granted pension 

certificate Ko. , payable at , at the rate of dollars per 

month, issued under the act of , 18 — ; that makes this declara- 
tion in order to secm-e the increase of pension to which is 

entitled under the thirteenth section of the act of July 27, 1868. 

My post office address is as follows : 

(Declarant's signatiu'e.) 

Also personally appeared and , residents of [county, city, 

or tmcn,] persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, 
and who, being by me duly sworn, say that they were present and saw 

sign name [or make mark] to the foregoing declaration ; 

and they further swear that they have every reason to believe, from the 

appearance of the applicant and their acquaintance with , that 

is the identical person represents self to be, and that they have 

no interest in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signatures of witnesses.) 

Sworn to and siibscribed before me. this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, 
in the prosecution of this claim. 

(Signature of judge or other officer.) 

Willows slwuM depose that they have not retnarried. 



40 



FORM OF SUEGEONS' AFFIDAVIT— NAVY CLAIMS. 

[If the claimant for a i^ension has not been examiaed, and the degree 
of his disability certified, before his discharge, by a navy surgeon, and 
if the certificate of a navy surgeon or a board of survey is not obtainable, 
on satisfactory explanation of this fact, he may produce the affidavit of 
two surgeons reputable in their profession, and certified as such by the 
magistrate before whom their statement is sworn to, in accordance with 
the following form :) 

(Date.) 

It is hereby certified that , who was a in the naval ser- 
vice of the United States, [lisre state the vessel or station on which a;ppli- 

cant was engaged, and his particular service,] is suffering from* , 

and he is thereby not only incapacitated for naval duty, but, in the 
opinion of the undersigned ist disabled from obtaining his sub- 
sistence from manual labor. And we further certify that upon satisfac- 
tory evidence, and after accurate examination, we believe the said disa- 
bility was incurred in the naval service of the United States and in the 
line of diity. 

, Surgeon. 



Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , A. D. 

186 — ; and I hereby certify that the said and are known 

to me as surgeons in actual practice, reputable in their profession, and 
that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in the prosecution of this 
claim. 

(Magistrate's signatiire.) 

GUARDIANS' CLAIMS UNDER SECTION 4, ACT OF JULY 27, 3868. 

Guardians, in applying on account of minor children of a soldier whose 
widow is entitled to pension, may present their claim imder the fourth 
section of the act of July 27, 1868, in accordance with Form C, with 
such obvious changes as the nature of the case may demand. 

SPECIAL ACT CASES. 

In cases authorized by special acts of Congress, formal declarations 
from the claimants thereimder are required, as in cases under the 
general law. 

* Here give a particular descriptioa of the wound, injury, or disease, and specify in what 
manner it has affected the applicant so as to produce disability in the degree stated. 

t The blank is to be filled up with the proportional " degree" of disability ; for example : 
" three-fourths," " one-half," "one-third," &c., or " totally," as the case may be. 



